Hidden Thorns
by SamAP
Summary: How well do you really know the people closest to you? Are they really that innocent? One day, they could look like the delicate petals of a rose. And one day, you could get stabbed by one of their thorns. RussellxOC
1. Meeting the Crew

_My first Pirates in Love fic (don't hate me, TF fandom! I'm trying to rewrite the stories! I really am!). _

_**Blanket Disclaimer:**__ I don't own anything except my OC and my imagination._

_This story follows Russell's route and then some. I don't have an exact schedule just yet, but expect a new chapter every weekend._

_Enjoy, my lovelies!_

* * *

"Five, six, seven, eight! One, two, three, four—Keep your toes pointed, Janelle!" the dance instructor called, tweaking each of her pupils' mistakes. Her timed claps echoed throughout the old, run-down dance hall, rattling its walls with every leap the dancers made, showering their perfect features with a fine layer of dust. The only source of light was from the early, afternoon sun.

"No, no, no!" the instructor sighed, stopping the thuds of feet as the students listened to her wisdom. "Ladies, please. After you chasse, back row leaps and pauses while the front row crosses in jetés. One more time! Take it from drop, turn, toes, toes!"

On the other side of the wall, in a deserted room, another woman was dancing. She followed the lesson intently, treading lightly on the ground so as not to alert the ladies on the other side. Her moves mirrored the routine given to the medium height women, for she was one. The only difference was her moves were less solid since, just as she could hear the perfect women on the other side, they could also hear her plain, average tapping.

All her life, she wanted to be a part of something, a place in society to belong. At a young age, her mother discovered her love of dancing, or at least what _seemed _to be a love of dancing. From then on, lessons were dealt and equipment was bought as they tried to find her a place to belong. Sadly, a horrible turn of events ripped away the dreams of this little girl. Her family became poorer and poorer, and the dream of living a normal life as Rose Carter became more and more distant.

"Oof!" she grunted, so caught up in her thoughts that she didn't notice a protruding nail that caught her shoe. Suddenly, all the noises of the world seemed to stop. A cold sweat overtook her entire body as she waited for her doom. The mere seconds felt like hours when the soft tapping of the instructor's foot paced the room, closer to where Rose lay.

"What was that noise?" the teacher asked delicately, worried that a bandit, thug, or worse, a pirate had snuck into her studio in order to take one of her children. This situation happened only twice before, thankfully ending positively for the women abducted.

"Oh, sorry, Ms. Delesandro! I tripped over my shoe. One of its laces came loose," a young voice spoke up.

Rose heard how the voice was distant and slightly muffled. That must have been Parker who spoke up, distracting the class from the blunder in the room adjacent.

"I love you, Parker," Rose mouthed, not yet breathing in case that might direct all attention back to her.

"Oh, it was only you, Agnes. Miss Parker, please take more care of yourself. Our show is only in one week, and I would hate for our group to be unbalanced because of careless shoe tying," Delesandro sighed, genuinely worried, though unable to show it for the sake of her girls.

"Yes, miss. It won't happen again. It better not." Agnes muttered the last bit to herself, picking up her body gracefully and going back to her spot in the back line.

When the rhythmic tapping of feet resumed, Rose lifted herself off the ground and exhaled deeply. That was a close call. One of many in fact. That hasn't been the first time Parker had to cover for her. Rose just silently prayed in thanks for Ms. Delesandro's gigantic heart of gold.

After another hour of practicing, Rose packed her bag and escaped quietly from the building. She had already completed her routine stretching to prevent muscle aches in the morning and was now headed off to her job. It was a tight, back-to-back schedule but it was necessary to support her mother. She no longer had the money to properly send Rose to dance school and any money her mother had at all came from Rose. The young girl was their only source of income.

Dashing away to make sure no one saw her leave the class, Rose took to the streets, feet barely making a sound as she glided across corners. All the townspeople waved to her as they were accustomed to her path.

A fruit vendor held out a slice of honeydew that Rose caught in her mouth without missing a beat. She dropped the appropriate amount of copper coins into his hand all while still running. The honeydew tasted so forgiving in her mouth as it cooled her insides with its sweet nectar. Rose must have eaten it in record time as she ran past another vendor who switched bags with her. Now the woman had her work bag instead of her dancing one.

"Thanks, Hector!" Rose hollered behind her.

"No problem, Rose," he bellowed, shaking his head with a lighthearted chuckle as he stowed her dance bag away until she came running back to grab it.

Without any warning, Rose's sprint paused abruptly as she collided with something; a something so forceful that it commanded Rose to fall onto her back. That something was a tall, beautiful woman, easily two inches above Rose's head.

_Oh no._

"Nerissa 'Runaway' Carter," the woman growled, crossing her arms and pursing her lips. Her mere presence gave off a terrifying aura, one of great superiority.

A jolt of fright zapped through Rose as she slightly lost consciousness. She turned to face the woman, ready to lie her way out of yet another conundrum. Instead, the smaller girl found herself sighing a breath of grateful relief.

"Agnes Madeline Parker," Rose returned, somewhat out of breath. The taller woman bent down to pick up her best friend. "Thank you for saving me at the studio, but I really need to go to work. You know I only have a five minute window to get from here to there. And 'there' is five minutes and one second away!"

"Well, too bad. You're just going to have to sprint faster than usual. I have a bone to pick with you," Parker drawled, drawing out every single word.

"Fine, fine, fine! Just yell at me already!" Rose urged, feeling very antsy as each word was elongated.

"Geez, calm down, will ya? I just wanted to tell you to quit messing around back there. One more flub and I swear Ms. Delesandro will cut me off. The show's in a week, Rosie. That means stop screwin' around," Parker scolded.

"Yes, yes, yes, I'll stop!" Rose agreed, slurring her words together as she hardly paid attention to what she was actually being told off for.

Agnes gazed deep into her friend's dark brown eyes. If she squinted, Agnes could tell that Rose's pupils were dilated. Rose wasn't paying attention… again.

"Ugh, you're such an idiot," she muttered. "At least listen to this. I want to see you in the front row of that auditorium, cheering me on as I leap over everyone's heads, got it?"

Rose stopped her quick breathing and regarded her age old friend. "Yes, Agnes. I got it," she offered sincerely.

"Don't call me Agnes."

"Don't call me Nerissa."

"Touché."

"To you, I 'shay' as well. Now please, let me go!" Rose begged, practically bounding in her spot.

"Fine, go! Make money, you greedy brat," Parker teased, watching as Rose scurried off with unknown grace. Rose often complained at how much more poise Parker had, all because she was raised in a richer family. But little did she know that Parker saw the beauty in Rose's steps, an untapped resource, thus her nickname 'Runaway.' Rose ran from place to place so many times, she made it look good.

The smaller woman dodged every crate, barrel, and person in her way, leaping to great heights over obstacle after obstacle. All the while, she dragged her work dress over her simple leotard, finally tying a sash around her waist to keep her clothes together. The bar was right in front of her, shining in all its mucky glory. It wasn't the best place to work, but it was a job all the same.

Seeing as there was no time to take the keys from her sash to open the door, Rose aimed for the opened window, diving into it and landing flat on her back with a painful thud. Bright stars and curious black spots danced in her vision while her head was swimming in unhealthy circles. Why on Earth did she think that that was a good idea?

"Smart," the cranky bartender snorted, yanking open the unlocked door and leaving. Rose moaned as she thought to herself how stupid she was. The door was unlocked the entire time.

Getting up, she went to the washroom, fixing her hair and realigning her messed up clothing. Rose noticed how she still had her dance shoes on and rummaged around her bag for regular shoes. The only other thing there was her bandana. Darn. Maybe no one would notice it. It's not like her brown dance shoes were any different than her brown work shoes.

Stuffing the bandana away, she threw the bag clumsily into a closet and tore out a mop. The bar was still dirty from those who came late at night and stayed until the crack of dawn, and the man working the shift before her hadn't bothered to tidy the place.

"Great, just perfect," she grumbled to herself, taking pride in how neat her mop strokes were. It was like a dance, fluid in motion. Unconsciously, her toes began standing on their tips as she twirled slowly around the mop, using it as a dance partner. Sweet, calming music played in her mind as she tumbled over and under the furniture, never letting the handle of the mop touch the floor, even if it was a centimeter away.

The lyrics of the music broke through her soft lips out of mere habit. She hadn't even noticed until it was too late that she was singing.

Knock! Knock!

The striking tone made Rose cringe and stop all motion. It was too early for the owner to arrive, as he usually did, and it was too late for her coworker to come back. Rose thought about her singing and cursed herself for uttering a sound at all, as if anyone could really hear her.

"Open up! Gimme some booze!" a rough voice ordered, deafened by the thick, wooden door. By the sound of it, he wasn't alone outside. The shuffles of feet were detected. There must have been at least five men outside.

Collecting her composure, she prayed that these weren't some idiot alcoholics looking for something to satisfy their needs… with or without violence.

"Sorry, we're not open yet," she called, trying not to sound terrified behind the door. Suddenly, a thought struck her. Did she even lock the door? "Hey!"

The men barged through, looking awfully irked with her statement. They did not want any back talking at this point in the day and they weren't going to tolerate any. Regardless of how ugly these men were or how curt they acted, only one thing stood out in Rose's mind.

There were definitely more than five of them.

"Gimme some booze, ya damn woman," the man gruffly repeated, stomping towards the inwardly trembling girl. He easily towered over her. In fact, they all were much taller than her. And they all looked vicious, reeking of sweat and alcohol.

"I'm really sorry, but we're not opening until late afternoon. It's a Sunday, sir," Rose spoke out again, remaining civil in hopes that they wouldn't stomp on her.

"Hmm…" another man pondered, eyeing the pitiful excuse of a woman. "Ya wan' us t' go away, don't ya?" he stated, getting close to her face in order to make it a threat.

"No! Not at all, I just want you to come back later," she offered nervously, breathing a wary laugh. Rose hadn't noticed the first man eyeing her head to toe.

"Ah, that's a nice body ya got there," he chuckled huskily. "It ain't much for a kid like you, but it'll do," he mumbled in her ear.

"N-no! Stop! Let me go!" Rose yelled, in a full state of trepidation. She pushed him away but was grabbed right back in. Her weaker limbs were no match for his much chunkier ones.

"Stop? Stupid girl, don't you know that booze and women are doctor's orders?" he retaliated, exhaling his foul breath onto her face. She choked on the stench and turned to breathe fresher air. He had gripped her wrists, licking each one of her fingertips. "Mmm, she tastes sweet."

Rose whined, trying to rip herself away from these men. The others that were here trashed the place, looking for the beer barrels.

"Stop your squirming, girl!" the man watching barked, flicking a knife towards her, resting it on her cheek. He pressed as much as her skin would allow without drawing any of her life source. Rose's heart sped up in its place, making blood run laps around her fragile body. "We can't let you leave now, you've seen too much. Now we've got to punish ya," he cackled cold-heartedly.

In a last ditch effort, Rose screamed to the top of her lungs, hoping her voice would carry. "Somebody, help!" she hollered, screeching a deathly decibel into the thugs' ears. They all groaned and cringed, but the grip on her wrists stayed firm.

Boom!

Something flew through the opened door, implanting itself into one of the men's arm. It attacked the arm that held the knife on Rose's cheek. He doubled over, writhing in pain.

"Too many bottom feeders around here," a tall man spat, eyeing the place over once, literally. He only had the one eye. The other was covered with an eye patch. In his grasp was a gun that was obviously well cared for. It must have cost a lot, too. The rest of his get up was so intimidating, every step of his boot echoed in the room.

Rose immediately concluded that he must have been a bad guy, too.

"Great, just what I needed," she mumbled, hoping that she'd be able to survive this. Maybe a stroke of luck would have its way with her and she'd be able to talk her way out of this.

"Stop flirtin' with a child, it's embarrassing," the newcomer spoke with a smirk. With the quick calculations he grew up learning, he knew that he just needed to keep talking for at least a minute or two for the others to catch up to him.

He was definitely a bad guy, Rose thought with prejudice, not once thinking he might be helping her.

"Who are you?" the man holding her grumbled, tightening his grip on her wrists. She felt the blood draining from her hands as he cut the circulation off. He might as well snap her in two with the force he's using.

"You go for a scrawny one like this?" the gun-wielder spoke with little to no emotion. Yet all his thoughts were in his head as he quickly studied the men there. Instantaneously, all their weaknesses were apparent. He knew where to shoot, how to shoot, and how many bullets he'd use. And that was only if he fought these people alone. There was still one more guy making his way to this repulsive scene.

Rose held back her urge to react to his words. Although he was rude, he was still saving her. After she discovers his motives, then she'll judge him. Still, calling her scrawny was a churlish move. Rose was placing all her chips on him being another lust-driven baddy.

"That's it, you're talkin' time is over!" the man holding Rose growled, dropping her and rushing to the composed man. At that moment, another person burst through the doors, anger written all over his face.

"More?" Rose squeaked, rubbing at her wrists. The blood felt odd as it flooded back into her hands.

"Eduardo, don't go alone," the new one almost panted. He had chased Eduardo down when he saw him run to the bar. The screeching voice was audible to all… and damn annoying.

Rose took a good look at these men. The one with the gun—Eduardo, she guessed—had gun powder black hair that was neatly pushed back while this new one had dirty blond hair that flopped around wherever it pleased. Who were they? And what were they doing here? As far as she knew, especially from past experiences, her voice didn't have the power to _save_ her.

"Idiot, I wasn't going alone. I was waiting for you," Eduardo muttered behind him, trying not to tip off the other thugs.

"Who are ya? Are ya with this guy?" someone addressed the blond man who had just arrived.

"What are ya squawkin' about? Whatever, I'll take a glove," he muttered to Eduardo, pointedly ignoring the thug.

"A glove?" Rose muttered. Does he mean five thugs? How could they possibly take all of these guys on? There are probably ten of them.

"You're only two! Ya know ya don't have a chance," someone pointed out.

_So I wasn't the only one who noticed,_ Rose thought.

"Let's get 'em!" another yelled, pounding a fist into his palm.

"Fine by me!" the blond one agreed, whipping out two blades. These men irked him to no end. How could they do something so stupid?

Rose gawked at the sight, hiding behind a stool in order to disappear. She was so engrossed with the fact that this man was a two-sword fencer that she didn't notice her knuckles turning white with the force her death grip had on the stool. It's not every day you see a two-sword fencer.

With a hearty roar, he rushed at the thugs, swinging his swords with unity and grace. He was obviously very skilled. Everyone in his path dropped like flies.

_W-was this… a game to him_? Rose thought with wide eyes. He seemed to actually enjoy watching his enemies fall. Her breath paused in its place, not wanting to let others know of its presence, though her body was trembling, contradicting any sense of trying to hide.

"Oy, what're ya lookin' at?" Eduardo barked, shooting each opponent in precise movements. He was just as good as the fencer.

Amidst her terror, Rose noticed something. The men that are seemingly saving her… they weren't killing anyone. The fencer struck only to disarm the men. The sharp shooter was aiming for knives only. What kinda bad guys were these two?

"Who-who are these guys?" one of the men gasped, struggling to run away. So the feeling was mutual.

"You… you… you're Sirius!" someone yelled out.

"Darn right, they're serious," Rose muttered. At that point, she spotted the tattoo on Eduardo's arm. Oh! "They're _Sirius_," she whispered to herself. It was written in warped letters on his arm. But what exactly was Sirius?

"Woman, yo!" Eduardo addressed to the quivering lady on the ground. He had almost forgotten about her.

Rose stiffened at the sound of her gender. Her head snapped to the source as she feared that a bullet would pierce through her skull. She saw him roll his eyes… eye… in annoyance when she refused to acknowledge him any other way. Rose felt herself being lifted from the spot, air breezing through her skirt.

Eduardo had carried Rose to her feet by her arm. "Don't just sit there, get out!" he growled, shoving her towards the door.

"Yes, sir!" she spoke breathily, dipping her head quickly in agreement. Rose didn't want to stick around to see what these people might do to her.

"Ha!" he chuckled as he glanced at her. _Thank goodness this girl's not a complete idiot,_ Eduardo muttered in his mind. "You can take an order right in!"

_What kind of attribute is that to get worked up over?_ she wondered. "What?"

"Don't be dazed off! Just get out!" he ordered, taking back what he just thought. Were all women this dim? No, just the ones who get in this kind of trouble.

"Yes, sir!" Rose repeated, flying out the door. She ran and ran as far as her legs could take her. Nothing could slow her down, not even any of the people who stood plainly in front of her. Most of the townspeople knew of Rose's running, but they never expect her to sprint at this time of day. They all bore worried faces. Something must be wrong.

Deciding that she was far enough, Rose slowed to a walk along the harbor. _Those two saved me,_ she hummed to herself, looking up at the large ships docked here. _But who are they? They were pretty tough._

"Sirius… what is that? A constellation?" Rose wondered out loud. The second her voice broke through the air, a yell was directed at her.

"There she is!" a thug from earlier yelled, pointing at Rose for all to see.

"The heck? They were looking for me?" she gasped in fright, taking off in a full on sprint.

"Hey, come back here!" another one yelled, chasing her. "'Cuz of you, our buddies got hurt!"

_Crap, they want revenge. I gotta get out of here,_ she thought with every footstep. Rose barely made a sound on the sea-stained wood as she padded across it. The two men following her were too slow, their image shrinking as she got further away. Despite her effort, they were still on her trail. She quickly turned a corner and hopped into an opened barrel, placing the lid on as swiftly as she could.

Her heart was pounding in her ears, echoing loudly in the barrel. She was thankful for her small features that allowed her to squeeze inside the confined space. Sometimes it was good to be average. Rose felt that everyone could hear her pulse and her breath as it amplified in that tiny area.

"Eh, where'd she go?" a dark voice called out, jolting Rose in her spot.

_This is it, this is how I die. I'm sorry, Mom, for leaving so soon, I'm sorry Ms. Delesandro for cheating you out of your classes, I'm sorry Parker for missing your show, I'm—_She stopped her apologies when the sound of retreating footsteps came into play.

"Shit… where is she?" the other one grumbled.

"Damn it! We lost her!" they complained.

Rose sighed in relief, sinking into the barrel. The buzz in her head died down to a slow, soothing pulse. Their footsteps became mixed with everyone else's, making it hard to tell if they were gone already. She decided to stay in the barrel for a while, until she was sure they were gone.

* * *

Multiple minutes passed by, maybe even an hour or two. Regardless of the time, Rose was getting cramped and she longed to get out. The second she tried to stand, the barrel moved, forcing her to sit again. The barrel tilted on its side, rolling to its destination.

_Crap, someone's taking the barrel somewhere._

"Wait, hold on!" she called. Unfortunately, the person rolling her yelled some directions at the exact same time, drowning her voice out. Rose made to yell again when the barrel hit a bump, make her slam her head down in the small space.

"Damn it, Captain. Whaddya got in here?" the one pushing the barrel mumbled, hearing the commotion on the inside.

Those were the last words Rose heard as she was beckoned into a ceaseless sea of black sleep. _Dang it, I'm losing cons…_

* * *

_And we all know what happens next. Reviews are much appreciated and needed! I use your constructive criticism to better myself as a writer. Please and thanks._

_And shout out to my wonderful editor, **writer-of-words**. Thanks so much for hopping this crazy train x)._

**_~Don't be a stranger ;D_**


	2. All Play and No Work

"Oy, Captain! Where'd ya want me t' put the booze?" the two-sword fencer called, rolling the incredibly heavy barrel. Funny, the alcohol was never this heavy.

A tall, well-built man dropped onto the ramp next to his subordinate, walking with him. He wore a large, soot black hat with a pompous, white feather drooping on the side that signified his position as captain, paired with a matching coat that he didn't bother threading his arms through.

"Ah, Russell, just roll that over to Thomas. He knows where t' place that."

"Aye, Cap," Russell agreed, pushing the locks of dirty blond out of his eyes. He hated being stuck with the grunt work but at least it gave him something to do to prove his strength. If pushing this barrel was a hassle to everyone, then he'd be the one to push it because he had the burliest arms amongst them. At least, that's what he thought.

Another man strode into the scene, asking as he holstered his gun, "Captain, where do ya want us to go after we leave this port?" Eduardo's gun-powder hair flew with the direction of the wind, never once obstructing his face. The brown coat he donned merely fanned out along with the breeze.

"Well, considerin' that it's a full moon tonight…" the captain thought, running scenarios through his head, "… I'll tell ya when I feel like it." He shrugged.

"Aye, Captain Morgan." He sighed, sauntering away, already very accustomed to his captain's many whim-based decisions. With Eduardo's advanced, calculating brain, it wasn't hard to quickly changed directions when out at sea. "Hey, Thomas!"

"Yes, sir?" Thomas asked, snapping to attention.  
"It's a full moon tonight, I want ya t' help Nathan in the kitchen. You know how he likes preparin' early for our full moon parties."

"Aye, sir." Thomas nodded his head and went to look for Nathan. The red scarf around his neck tickled him as the knot flapped near his ear. There was a nice breeze in this port. It was very uplifting. Thomas ran to find Nathan but was quickly stopped by Russell.

"Hey, Thomas, Cap said to roll this to wherever you put the booze." Russell shoved the barrel to the smaller man.

"Sure thing, Russell." Thomas was happy to take on another responsibility. He had to prove himself to these people. It had only been a year since he had been accepted within their group, the Sirius. And he wouldn't let himself disappoint anyone.

Thomas took the barrel that was resting on the deck of the ship and rolled it downstairs, where they always stored the food. It was cold in this area, and moist. He shoved the barrel upright, expecting to hear the slosh of alcohol moving about. But all he heard were thuds, like potatoes. It was probably nothing, he shouldn't speak out at a time like this.

Ignoring the odd cargo, Thomas jogged up the stairs and into the kitchen. Already, Nathan, their ship chef, had laid out piles of vegetables and meat.

"Ah, Thomas, 'bout time ya got here. I want ya t' peel the carrots." He tossed a knife to the greenhorn. Thomas only nodded at him and got to work.

Nathan drew in a sigh as the heat from the stove radiated around him. He hadn't had the pleasure of feeling the cool, fall breeze outside. But his passion was in the kitchen, cooking only the best for his crew mates, so he didn't mind. Though the way his bandana started to stick to his scalp signaled that he should at least breathe some fresh air before they left this island.

Outside the ship, Russell was walking around the port, looking at the vendors and at their merchandise. The crew was leaving in a while so he thought he'd just kill time until then. It's not like he had some sort of responsibility anyway.

As he meandered through the sandy walkways, he spied a man who strutted with a confidence that took up the entire block. On this man's waist was something that caught Russell's eye. Two swords. _Was this man a two-sword fencer, too? _He had been waiting to find someone like him, to test his strength. With a push of his dirty blond locks, he dashed toward the man.

"Oy, you!" he called, watching as the man turned around.

"Whaddaya want, kid?" The older man spat at the ground.

"I wanna challenge ya. Y'know how t' handle a sword, don't you?" Russell crept closer. Bystanders from every direction flocked to make a near perfect circle around the men.

"Course I know how t' handle a sword." The man patted his weapon. "Need me to teach you?"

"Sure, let's have a little lesson." Russell chuckled darkly, whipping out his dual blades. Gasps emitted from every person, each scuttling backwards from the fight.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Look kid, I don't wanna pick a fight. I ain't no two-sword man. I just been holdin' this one for a friend." He backed away from this serious guy.

Russell may have looked like a kid compared to him, but now he knew that they were dealing with some real business.

"Now don't you back away from a f—Ah, what in hell?" Russell cursed when someone grabbed his collar and jerked him backwards.

"Sorry, folks, show's over. We must be getting on our way. Our ship's sailin'," a dark skinned man called, rubbing the back of his neck. He yanked Russell away and led

him towards their boat.

"Christopher, what are you doing? I almost had that guy!" Russell whined in a whisper, ripping his collar away from his friend.

"We're leaving now, and I was told to get you. Didn't know I'd have to stop a fight."

"Wait, stop right there!" the man called out, pointing a sword in their direction.

"Just shut up and let me talk," Christopher whispered. "What seems to be the problem, sir?"

"You two are going on a ship?"

"Yes, that would be correct."

"Well, the only type of people who dress like that and have weapons dangling off their belts are pirates. And you should know what we think about pirates around these parts." He estimated the two's strength as the threat rolled out. Maybe he could take them both.

"Ah, untrue, sir. We are merely a cargo ship for his majesty, the king. We're on our way to Moldor now." Christopher's lies were exquisite as usual.

"What about this one? He don't seem like a cargo shipper to me," the man said skeptically.

"Ah, him. He came with the ship. Insurance," he whispered, trying not to let Russell hear.

"Hey!" Obviously, Russell heard.

"Keep quiet," Chris mumbled again. "So if that's all, we'll be on our way." Quickly, the two men turned and speedily walked back to the boat. "Ugh, that was close," Chris sighed. "Don't be an idiot, Russell. You know that an attitude like that could only get you into trouble."

"Don't tell me what to do, ya stinkin' pirate," Russell scolded, stalking off towards the other side of the boat.

"You two _are_ pirates!" the man from before shouted, having followed them. "Hey, someone get the authorities, these guys are pirates!"

"Shit," Russell cursed, looking at Eduardo. Eduardo was positioned behind the wheel, understanding that they had to leave now before any navy men came to arrest them. In a flash, the boat vanished from the harbor, off to its homeland in the sea.

Captain Morgan confronted his men with a frown set on his face. "Who was the idiot that tipped off the navy?" he asked simply, scanning their faces. All of them answered with a finger pointed towards Russell.

The man in question gulped and bowed his head in shame. A firm whack to the back of it jolted him out of his sad funk.

"Idiot boy, do not do that again," Morgan warned, pinching Russell on the nose.

"Ow! Yeah, I got it. No more fights."

"Good boy."

* * *

"Ugh," Rose moaned, rubbing her head. She tried stretching her limbs but found it impossible to do so. Her legs appeared to be meeting her face in an almost painfully cramped position. _What happened? Oh, right, I hit my head on something_. Rose tried opening her eyes, but found that it was impossible. They wouldn't open! But she could_ swear_ that her eyes are open. Slowly, she reached a delicate finger to her eyeball and poked it.

"Agh!" she yelled when she made contact. So… her eyes are open. Oh no, is she… blind? Did hitting her head knock out her eyesight? Wait… where did she hit her head? Right, on the barrel. That's why it was so cramped in here. Hold on, the barrel. Could it be…?

She tried prying the lid off, but it wouldn't budge. It felt like there was something on top of it. Rose dragged her fingers around the barrel, finding a weak spot in the wood instead. She curled her hand into a fist and punched the rotten wood.

"Ah, crap, that's smarts!" she groaned, tending to her throbbing hand. At least there was light in the barrel… and air. Alas, there was still no means of escaping. _How long have I been in here?_ "Hello? Is someone there?" she hollered, through the hole.

No response. She wasn't about to try screeching again. Or singing for that matter. No one needed to live through that train wreck.

Her hands instinctively reached out to bang on the walls of the barrel, in the hopes that someone would hear that instead.  
"Shoot. Shoot, shoot, shoot." Rose refused to swear but still… she was pretty close to doing so. If this barrel wasn't going to open any time soon, well… that wasn't a good thing.

"Okay! I'll get the booze!" a voice yelled out, followed by the sounds of comforting footsteps.

_Someone's here! They'll get me out!_ _But wait. _It was a man's voice, pretty young from what she detected. But after what Rose experienced, she seriously reconsidered the thought of confronting another man. What if it was one of the thugs from before?

The lid began twisting around, obviously preparing to open itself. _Looks like I have no choice._

Pop!

_I feel like a carbonated drink._ And just like one, Rose sprang to her feet, gasping for air. It was almost involuntary how quickly she tumbled out onto the cold, wooden floor.

"Gah!" the man in front of her hollered, stumbling onto his back. He witnessed as a creature appeared out of thin air, flopping to the ground near the barrel. It was small and smooth, unlike the men he knew who were large and rather square shape. Was it a genie?

Rose fell out of the cylindrical prison, drinking sweet, sweet air into her lungs by the mouthful. She never thought that she'd miss the atmosphere so much. Her ribcage protested the way her lungs beat across its walls. Rose was too weak to pick herself up. _It probably just takes time to get the blood circulated._

The young man who witnessed this spectacle crawled closer, hesitating at the slightest. This small creature was so fragile with brown, sun kissed hair draped in a beautiful pattern and tattered rags covering any skin. He could see how it was curled into a fetal position, chest heaving up and down. Did he break it?

The creature turned onto its back slowly, greeting his eyes. He could see clearly now that it was a woman. He'd never seen a woman here before. And this one seemed terrified.

"Uh, hi… thanks…" she panted, laughing silently at the expression on his face. He looked like an innocent angel looking down on her with the way the light silhouetted around his soft, auburn hair. This was for sure not a thug.

"A-a woman?" he gasped, hands trembling. What the heck was he supposed to do? It's not like he talked to many girls before, much less been within five feet of them!  
"Oh, I sure hope so," Rose muttered, catching the almost frightened look in his eyes. "I-it was a joke," she breathed, hoping she hadn't broken him. "Um, can you help me up? I kinda lost all feeling in my legs."

"What? How? Why?" he began to rant, completely ignoring her. Obviously, the fact that there was a _woman _on this ship still plagued him. He paced a short distance, freaking out and wringing his hands.

"O…kay," Rose mumbled, painfully sitting upright and rubbing her legs to get the blood circulated correctly. She began running through her routine stretches to try and get feeling in her joints. Once she was able to stand, she eyed the strange boy and how he talked to himself.

"I-I'm sorry, but I was just…" Rose tried to comfort him, to no avail.

"Booze transformed into a woman! Nate'll be pissed off…" he sighed, directing it to her without really acknowledging her.

"E-excuse me? Can you hear me?" Rose asked, her throat cracking up. She must

have been in there for a while if her throat was getting dry.

"Aw, man. I'm in deep trouble…" he murmured again, stopping his pace to inspect this girl. Maybe he could hide her. Wait, no, that'd make him guilty of harboring a fugitive. What if he killed her? No! That's so wrong!

"Thomas! What's taking ya so long? Just bring me the booze!" another voice sounded from the staircase.

The boy—Thomas, Rose guessed—stood rigid at the sound of his name.

"Nathan!" he answered in surprise, unprepared for this man to come down here. Thomas' life flashed before his eyes as he thought that this was the day that he'd be forced to walk the plank.

"Whoa!" Nathan breathed, glancing at the extra head in the room. "What's a _woman_ doin' here?"

"Am I just 'woman' to people?" Rose asked, accepting the fact that she was ignored.

"Nathan, I'm so sorry," Thomas apologized, as if he had anything to do with this. "But I have no clue at what's going on."

Nathan regarded Rose, closing his mouth that had unhinged itself from shock. He walked towards her in silence, thinking of the many ways and reasons she might be here.

Rose was instantly intimidated. Her legs began to buckle beneath the weight of his glare.

"I-I'm so sorry. I—," she began in barely a whisper. _He's going to kill me… with a smile on his face… slowly._

"How the hell didja get on our ship?" Instead of the harsh, demanding voice Rose expected, what came out of him was actually inquisitive and gentle. He was genuinely worried about her, but if only because she might die in his hands. He didn't want that kind of guilt.

"Ship? I'm on a ship?" Rose squeaked, backing into the barrels behind her. So many questions flooded her head that it was hard to hear what was happening in reality. It all made sense; the salty air, the unstable floor, the amount of food stored down here.

"Yeah, didn't ya know?" Thomas asked, softening his tone. Now _he_ was worried about this woman. He didn't think she'd be able to survive on this ship. This one was too… fragile. Thomas inched closer to her as she began to hyperventilate, resting a soothing hand on her arm, patting it slowly. He looked to Nathan for help, his eyes saying, _Am I doing this right?_ Nathan responded with a shrug. "What happened to ya?" the younger man inquired.

"How'd you get on our ship?" Nathan finished, hoping that she wouldn't pass out.

"Um… I-I was chased by a bunch of thugs… and-and I hid in that barrel," Rose explained, pointing to the barrel. _Oh, I'm an idiot. That barrel was cargo for this ship._

"… Damn," Nathan breathed after a while, a sort of sad look on his face.  
Rose jerked her head back in offense. Was he actually disappointed that she wasn't booze? She could have been dead!

In the next second, Rose was ripped from Thomas' horrible attempts at calming her and was placed roughly on Nathan's shoulder.

"Ugh!" she grunted, his sharp shoulder jarring her abdomen. It knocked the wind out of her lungs. "Hey! No, put me down!" She squirmed weakly, unable to shake his grip. Man, he was strong. And quiet. Despite all her struggling, he was silent. Rose didn't know whether to be offended or frightened. "Please, at least tell me where you're taking me," she begged.

"Shut up. Quit barkin' like a dog." Nate sounded for all the world like he was a cruel monster. Unbeknownst to Rose, he was terrified for her safety. Anyone would be. She wasn't accustomed to these conditions. But like hell if he was about to tell her that.

Rose could only think the worst. With the luck she's had with men so far, she predicted that she'd be either dead or abused by morning. Perhaps even both.  
Nathan turned into a room, kicking the door open.

The meek woman on his shoulder said her last prayers, knowing that he brought her into his room to take advantage of her. _I'm not even pretty__!_At least, compared to all the other woman they could have taken.

As expected, he plopped her right onto a bed, though it was harder than most beds. It was painful on her rear and it rattled her head. Carefully, she pried open her eyes, taking into view at what his lair was like.

"Medicine bottles?" There were first aid items everywhere, decorating the walls and cabinets. "Huh?" _What kinda room is this?_

"Doc, you've got a patient," Nathan said to other man in the room. Rose hadn't noticed him.

But wait… Did Nathan bring her… into a doctor's office? Maybe she had these people pegged all wrong.

"Oh," the doctor chirped, turning to face Nathan and Rose. "This's an unusually pretty patient," he spoke in a light, Caribbean accent.

Yep, she definitely had the wrong take on these men.

"I think she hit her head," Nathan explained, nodding towards her.

"Did you, now? Let me see," the doctor spoke, feeling Rose's head gently. This was an odd experience for him, seeing as he rarely treated female patients. Her hair was so much softer than the men's on board, and her head was sculpted in a smoother fashion, rather than the thick skulls he was used to.

"Ow!" Rose squawked, flinching away from his hands as he pushed too hard on the bruise.

"Oh, forgive me, it has been a while since I've treated a lady," he spoke lightly, taking away his light brown hands. Had he not been on board with such pale men, he could have easily been mistaken for a white man, himself. "There, there," he said, patting Rose gently on the head.

"Uh…?" she hummed, feeling awkward at his attempts but resorted to ignoring it.

"You've got a big lump here," he announced to her, stroking her hair at where the bump was as if to soothe. With his many years of medical knowledge, he knew that she was currently under a lot of stress and anxiety. Chris dropped his hands, and lowered his voice to a whisper . "You're safe with us. Don't worry. Would you like to tell me what happened to you?"

"M-men were chasing me," she started, unsure of what to think anymore. "And, and I was hiding in a barrel. I hit my head and lost consciousness." The memory of those men threatening her life struck a chord in her heart. What would have happened had she not been saved? What would have happened if these awkward yet somewhat nice men hadn't treated her as they did?

_Crap, am I about to cry?_

"Don't cry," the doctor whispered near her face, trying to make eye contact. "I promise, this is a safe place, okay?" He tried patting her head again absentmindedly in the same spot as the bruise.

Now it was Rose's turn to smile, despite the dull pain. This man was genuine but a little lost in his train of thinking. "Um, that kinda hurts," she reminded him, hoping he didn't forget that she had a concussion.

"Oh, sorry, you hit your head. I forgot."

_Of course he forgot,_ she thought to herself.

"Let's see here," he mumbled, turning to look for something. "Hmm, oh, this one."

"Ice…" she stated, watching him come near her with it.

"Put that on your head. It should heal quickly."

"Thank you," Rose said, bowing slightly. She'd have to admit it, this one was a sweet guy.

"You've gotten onboard against your will… I apologize," the doc sighed.

_He feels bad about that? What kind of ship am I on?_

"Well, you shouldn't blame yourself for anything. It could have happened to anyone," he continued.

"Um, Doc." Nathan cleared his throat.

"Oh, right! They're dining on the deck right now. Well, since you're here, might as well introduce you to everyone." Rose, on the other hand, looked mortified.

"Um, everyone? That's kind of a lot of people," she spoke up, hesitatingly following the men out.  
"Not true, there are only six of us here, you shouldn't worry," Christopher spoke, glancing at her head every now and then.

"But don't get on our bad side. We might be forced to slice you up," Nathan warned seriously.

"What?" Rose squeaked, griping the ends of her vest.

"Stop scaring her, Nathan. You may be our chef but don't think for a second I won't dislocate your wrist."

"Geez, Chris, I was only playing with her," Nathan mumbled, silently scooting away from Doc's eerie grin.

_They considered that playing?_ Rose was taken aback. If that was playing… then what was work?

With each step she took, the smell of the sea became stronger, and the rocking of the ship became more unstable to her unaccustomed feet. The sound of the ocean lapping against the boat brought a bigger sense of reality to the frightened woman. The moment she stepped outside, only the bright, full moon gave her light as a pitch black abyss surrounded her.

_I really am on a ship. How am I going to explain this to my mom?_

* * *

**_~Don't be a stranger ;D_**


	3. Making Friends

"Ya should'a seen the look on your face when Cap called you out! It was like you were ready to die," Eduardo commented, patting a large slap on Russell's shoulder.

A cold gust of wind twirled through the deck as the men there conversed with each other, bathing in nothing but the moon's light.

"Ah, drop that, would ya? That happened a long time ago, it's best t' forget it," Russell laughed, shrugging the hand off.

"A long time ago? Why I ought'a—"

"Guys! Attention please!" Chris announced, hiding Rose behind him. "We have a guest, tonight." With that, he calmly brought her out, laughing quietly at how her eyes widened. She was so young.

The men at the table all turned in a synchronized fashion, laying their stares on this female. All were dead silent, waiting for someone to break the fragility of the moment.

"A woman?" Russell loudly erupted, upset by the reveal. "What the hell is a woman doin' on our ship?"

Rose gasped when she saw the familiar blond hair, how it crowded around his face.

"You! You saved me from the bad guys earlier." Rose held back her tongue when a glare was set on her.

"What? Who?" he returned, taking closer inspection of this girl. He didn't remember saving anyone. Russell got into so many fights each day that it was hard to keep track of which one was which.

Was Rose mistaken? Did she confuse him with someone? No, couldn't be, she'd remember those swords anywhere. He still had them strapped around his waist.

"Er, you sure? You know, at that bar…" she tried again, knowing for a fact this was him.

"Hmm…" Russell hummed, inching closer to her face to check. He hadn't noticed just how close he was, but Rose did.

She just stood in silence, blood rushing around in fear of what might come next.

Usually what comes next would either be a slap or a kiss, either way, she wasn't looking forward to it. Just as she was about to attack before he did, he snapped his head away, shrugging nonchalantly.

"I don't know ya," he hummed, almost bored now.

"What?" But she was so sure!

"Is she yer woman, Doc?" Russell asked Christopher. That was the only reason he'd let a girl on the deck. But even then she still wouldn't be worthy enough of his time, just tolerable. Perhaps Doc met a girl in Yamato and decided to bring her here. It was a poor choice, but what did he know of love?

"Nah, Doc ain't have no woman," Nathan confirmed. He looked over to the first mate, wondering if he brought this girl here. "How 'bout Eduardo?"

"What _about_ me?" he asked, crossing his arms. Who did she belong to?

"Hey, it's you," Rose breathed, afraid that he'd glare at her face like Russell did.

"You… You were at the bar," he muttered, eye widening.

_At least he remembered me,_ Rose sighed. "Right, me. You saved me from those thugs…" A thought struck her head, something she hadn't thought about until now.

"Um, w-where is this ship going?"

"What's your name?" Eduardo asked, stepping closer yet at a respectable distance.  
Now completely used to be ignored, she answered him compliantly.

"The name's Nerissa, but I go by Rose… or Runaway." She muttered the last bit as a joke to herself. Of all her running, she's never gotten this far.

"Runaway?" Christopher murmured, but otherwise went unnoticed.

"Rose, huh? You sure live up to your namesake," Eduardo commented, chuckling slightly to himself.

"Hmm? How so?" Rose folded her arms up like he did but if only to put some kind of barrier between her and everyone else on this ship.

"You look weak just like one."

"Ouch," Rose hissed. She didn't like the attitude this guy had. What right did he have to judge her? "Well, like my namesake, if you're not careful, I might just stab you." She spent the rest of her time wondering just where the heck she found the gall to say that.

A collection of ooh's erupted as they all mocked Eduardo's little defeat. It wasn't really anything that big of a deal, but it was rare to see the guy get shot down by someone as tiny as that.  
With a wry chuckle, Eduardo stepped up to the girl, emphasizing the fact that he was much, much taller than her. "Rose… I may remember that before you get swallowed by the sea." He watched her eyes widen as she gulped. It would have been funnier if she didn't react so weakly. Now he just came off as a rude idiot.

Rose took a miniscule step back and almost cowered behind Christopher. Could she really be swallowed by the sea? It seemed possible. One wrong step and she'd be lost in that freezing, black hole.

"Choose one, with or without a blindfold?" Eduardo asked menacingly, stepping away from the girl. He was afraid that he might give her a heart attack, but he refused to back down.

"What about a blindfold?" Rose squeaked, her pitch going higher than she was comfortable with. What kind of sadistic jerk was this one?

"Eduardo! You're thinking something dirty! Don't do that on our ship," Thomas scolded with a light dust of red across his cheeks. Is this how all men were supposed to act around women? He sure couldn't tell with Eduardo.

"Your mind is somewhere else!" Eduardo cursed the boy for the misconception of his words. "I'm talkin' about makin' her walk the plank, kid!"

"Whoa, hold on. Let's not do that," Rose spoke up, wondering if she was only digging a deeper hole with every word she spoke. "I just asked where we were going, not how I'm going to die!"

Russell started snickering as if she triggered some sort of inside joke. "Where? Ya gotta be kidding," he laughed again. "A treasure island! Where else would pirates go, stupid?"

Rose's world darn near stopped as her heart refused to beat anymore. Her muscles tightened and her eyes widened to a very painful capacity. Did… did she just hear correctly?

"P-pirates?" Her voice became so small that it might as well be the wind whispering.

"Geez, this kid's voice is annoying," Eduardo complained, shaking his ears. Something was wrong with Rose's voice. Not that it was horrible, just… different. He couldn't put a pin on it, but he didn't like it. His comment earned himself the shut up glare from Christopher to which he returned with a roll of the eye.

"You… you seriously didn't know we're the Sirius Pirates?" Nathan asked, scratching at his bandana. This poor girl… she'll be dead in a week.

"Sirius," Rose whispered, letting the word tickle her lips. _That's what Sirius meant, a band of pirates. Great. Just great._  
"What a burden we've got. Fer cryin' out loud," Nathan muttered, rubbing at his temples. What other surprises are there in store with this woman?

"Agh, that's enough talking. Let's just throw her in the sea!" Russell spat, grumbling at his misfortune. This girl better not be the one to stop their party.

"Wait, we were serious about that?" Rose asked, throwing her hands up. She was not ready to die. There were still so many things she needed to do! Maybe she could beg them to drop her off at the nearest port.

"Hey, hey! You're scaring her with all that talk. She's frightened." Christopher wasn't going to let the teasing get out of hand. The girl was shivering at this point already. Though he couldn't tell if it was from trepidation or from the bitter cold.

"Hmph, you're too nice to her, Doc," Eduardo harrumphed, remaining indifferent to Chris's words. "Yo, you, Rose? We, here, have another option if ya don't wanna be swallowed by the sea. You don't wanna drown, now do ya?"

"Of course not! No idiot would want that," Rose exclaimed, thinking there may be a screw or two loose around this sausage fest.

"Well then, we'll just hafta sell ya at the harbor." Eduardo acted as if it was normal to suggest such a thing.

"What? Sell me?"

"Gah, calm down, your voice is making my ears bleed." He cringed to further that point. "But don't you worry, I'm a reasonable man. You can have your choice."

"Reasonable?" Rose stressed, quirking an eyebrow. "You're kidding, right?"  
Eduardo merely shrugged, giving her the cards he dealt. "Choose one now before I choose it for ya. And let me tell you, the sea is much closer than the harbor."

Seriously? Why today of all days? This could not be happening. Rose was almost sure that this happened because she refused to fully thank Parker for everything she's done. Or maybe because she cheated a customer out of a few copper pieces—which was done completely on accident. Karma was at work here, she could feel it.

"Hey, I need an answer, woman," Eduardo reminded, thumbing his gun.

"Um… I don't suppose you can give me another choice?" Rose shrugged her shoulders.

"_Another_ choice? Ya ain't making things easy fer us." With a sigh, Eduardo flipped out his gun and traced its engraved metal, purposely trying to strike fear into this girl. This was a fun game, he almost never got to play it anymore. "Well, let me think. Another choice would be marooning you on an island, or feeding ya to the seagulls."

"Ah, no thank you!" Rose managed to catch the minute smirk on Eduardo's face. He was playing with her! Seriously, what kind of ship was this?

"Agh, you've all had enough fun with her," Christopher sighed loudly, shaking his head. "Why do you want to frighten her?"

"He's right! She ain't bothering nobody," Thomas defended. Although his knowledge of women was small, he knew where the line was to be drawn. "She didn't choose to be on board."

Rose began making a mental list in her head. If she was going to survive this crazy nightmare, she needed to know who to trust. Thomas and Christopher were at the top of her list. They seemed to be the only sane ones. Nathan was next. He wasn't all too polite but at least he was civil. The bottom of her list consisted of Eduardo and Russell. There were no kind words for those two.

"No women on this ship! Pirates don't carry women on board!" Russell protested. Unknowingly, he just ranked last on Rose's list.

"Are you throwing her to the sea for the starving sharks?" Christopher asked rhetorically. His expression made Russell think twice about his words, but not before Eduardo had his say.

"Heh, are sharks even interested in her?" he chuckled, watching how her face scrunched up in protest.

"Hey, I might not be the best looking woman out there, but I've got meat on my bones," Rose retaliated, crossing her hands over her chest in protest.

"So, I take it you want to be sold at a harbor?"

"…"

"Thought so, scrawny kid." Eduardo was thoroughly enjoying himself. Surely, this is what women are good for.

"You're making my list, eye patch," Rose mumbled to herself, though was caught by Christopher who only laughed lightly.

The captain, who had only been watching the exchange between the two people, burst out in laughter, unable to hold it in anymore. They were hilarious, how could he get rid of her so quickly?

"Um… is there something wrong?" Rose asked, raising her eyebrow yet again. His outburst gave her a little jolt. She didn't even know he was here. Who was this guy?

"This is some entertainment, perfect under the full moon," he sighed once he sobered up.

"I'm sorry?" Rose checked to see if she heard right the first time. She was just… entertainment to this man? In a flash, he glided over to her, placing an arm around her shoulders. Rose almost drowned in his large coat and the scent of alcohol that seemed to ooze out of him. "May I help you?" Her questioned earned only another laugh from him.

But one thing she noticed was that once he took the attention, all became calm. Everyone was being respectful to this guy. Was… was he the captain?

"I made a decision!" he announced rather bluntly, still hooked onto Rose. "This woman is now a member of the Sirius!" Morgan beamed widely. Now that he had a taste of the kind of antics Rose gave off, he wasn't about to let her go.  
In that instant, every single person on the ship erupted in confusion.

"What?" most said.

"You're joking, right?" another exclaimed.

"What do we need _that_ woman for?" someone else groaned.

"Captain, you're out of your mind!" Nathan gasped, thinking that perhaps today was the day that his captain was _completely_ drunk off his ass. This girl can't handle a pirate life, even if it is temporary. By her appearance alone, it was obvious that she didn't know the first thing about a boat.

"Eh, I was thinking that this ship reeked too much of male sweat. Believe it or not but we all need a woman's touch added here. It'll keep us all sane," the captain rebutted.  
Nathan really couldn't complain about that. Regardless of how long he's been at sea with the guys, there was always some sort of void that he felt like filling. No doubt the others had that notion, too.

"Whoa, um, no disrespect to your kindness or anything, but I'm not giving anyone my woman's touch. I'm not that kind of person," Rose immediately stated, trying to wriggle out of the captain's grip. But he was too strong.

"Not like that, you stupid girl," Eduardo explained, dreading the thought of this ditz sharing the same air as he.

"You were _thinking_?" Nathan asked the Captain, ignoring the side conversation Rose had with Eduardo. Morgan released the lady and shrugged his shoulders.

"Hey, it's not like all I have on my mind is treasure. I have my thoughtful moments."

"Ah, quit yer whining," Russell grumped, "Captain's orders, guys

"Bah, I was having fun with this," Eduardo complained, wishing that he could have thrown her in the brig just to see her squirm.

"What, you were all just joking?" Rose cried, mouth agape.

"Hey, we're not barbarians. You gotta give us a little more credit than that," he returned.

"Well, to her defense, Eduardo, you do say some pretty dark things. It's hard to tell the difference between truths and lies with you," Christopher stated, smirking at Eduardo's expression.

"I thought we were supposed to be on the same side, Doc," he whispered, sad that his voucher switched places.

"The only side I'm on is justice."

"Hey, I'm not complaining. We've got an extra crew member," Thomas cheered, glad to have someone beneath him for once. But not even default authority would expand his ego. Rose was first and foremost a woman, and he knew to treat her as such… or at least to the extent of which he knew.

"Woman, listen carefully," the captain spoke, catching Rose's full attention. "The Sirius has three strict rules. One, protect your mate with your life. Two, never let women or children get harmed."

_What?_ Rose thought. _These rules… aren't very threatening. Are these people really pirates?_

"And three," he continued, "We party until dawn when there's a full moon out!"  
_Well, that would explain the feast they had out here__,__ tonight._ Rose concluded that maybe… just maybe… she could live on the ship for the time being… maybe.

"Don't worry about the men here. They're all nice to women." Captain Morgan patted her on the head.

"Ouch," she whined softly, going undetected by the captain. "Are you sure they're all nice to women? I have a few doubts with a couple of them."

The captain let out a roar of laughter, hugging her once more by the shoulder. "This one's got a sense of humor, just what we needed here!"

"I wasn't kidding." Her mutters were too quiet for anyone to pick up on it.

"Oh, hell, we'll just give her all the grunt work to do," Eduardo beamed, catching the glare she cast on him. He smirked right back at her, prepared to make this place her worst nightmare.

The captain laughed again, peering down at Rose. "Look at that cute, little face. Isn't it unique?"

"Meh, you see a woman scorned once, you've seen it a thousand times," Eduardo offered, still teasing the little girl.

"But isn't it refreshing to see it on such a young face?" Captain let go of Rose's slender shoulders and paced to face the front of the group. "There is one problem, though," he announced, scratching his chin. "There ain't a spare room on this ship for ya."

"No room?" Rose parroted, wondering just how they'd solve this problem. Maybe someone could move into someone else's room so there would be a free one for her. Or maybe she could make do in a small closet. It's not like she had anything to store anyway. All she had were the clothes on her back.  
She looked at Thomas who just shrugged at her, also at a loss for what the solution may be.

"So, it's quite obvious that _you_ have to share a room with someone!" Morgan chirped happily. This, of course set the room up for another commotion.

"Shut up, all of you!" he scolded light-heartedly.

"I'm sorry?" Rose's heart skipped a beat from fear. She could kiss her life goodbye now.

"Well, I'm not taking her. There ain't no way I'm letting a woman touch my stuff," Russell grouched, crossing his arms.

"I'm not a good fit, she might mysteriously disappear if she rooms with me," Eduardo warned.

"I can't have a girl in my room. It's not safe for anyone," Nathan joined.  
As they all began to bicker about who would have to take her in, Rose turned to Thomas.

"So, remind me again who I should stay twenty feet away from." She watched him glance at the one who argued the most passionately.

"Oh, that's Eduardo. He tends to get violent, but he won't hurt ya. And Russell, yeah, he's kinda mean, and not too much of a good sport, though I wouldn't judge him right away if I were you." Thomas remained silent about whether or not she should room with him. It was all her choice anyway. He wouldn't try to persuade her otherwise.

"Russell, huh?" Rose thought out loud, cringing at his rude mannerisms. She wasn't given time to think when the captain called out above all the shouting.

"Hah! The woman has chosen! Russell, make some room, she's bunking with you." Morgan spoke quickly, not giving them a chance to breathe.

"What?" they yelled in sync, sharing a resentful glare before turning back to the captain.

"With me? No way!" Russell protested.

"For once, we can agree." Rose looked at either Thomas or Christopher for help.

"Hey, what happened to your 'It's Captain's orders' attitude?" Christopher teased, unable to help Rose's predicament.

"What's so bad about it, Russ? You and this girl… in your room… alone. Think about it," Thomas kidded, trying to make light of it but in the wrong direction.

"Um, _no_. _Don't_ think about it," Rose warned, setting sad eyes towards Thomas. "I know you mean well, but please stop trying." He caught her drift and nodded quickly.

"Ya call this a girl?" Russell protested, gesturing to all of Rose.

"Did we not just go through this?" she said exasperatedly. "This is a chest, this is a waist, and these are my hips. They are all proportionate, you cannot argue with that!"

"Yes, I can. They may be proportionate but in what ratio?"

"Why I ought'a…" she mumbled, stomping closer to Russell but was held back by Christopher.

"Don't mind him, Rose. He's just shy."

"Oh, _shy_, huh?" she teased, relaxing her shoulders.

"Wha—The hell, Doc? I ain't shy!" Russell tried to argue.

"We know that you're actually thrilled to have been chosen," Chris continued, watching the red dust across his face.

"Enough blabber about how I feel!" he barked a bit too quickly. Russell thought that no one would catch that, but Rose… well… she wasn't as dim as she let on.

_I shouldn't be reading into this. The blush and the desperate change of subject mean nothing. Nothing, woman!_ she scolded herself.

"There ain't no way I'm 'thrilled' about any of this. I have to share my room with… with… a woman!" he cried out, shuddering comically.

"Hey, quit flattering yourself. I'm not too happy about this either," Rose stepped up.

"Then why in hell did ya choose me?" he barked right back.

"I didn't choose ya! Captain, you must'a heard wrong!" she tried.

"Ah, cut it out, the both a' ya!" Eduardo ordered.

"No!" the two roommates whined before sharing another disgusted look.

"Eh, what's the big deal? It's been said and done. Shoosh," he explained, shaking his head at the antics of these two kids. Now that he thought about it, they weren't too far in age. Now it's like there would be two Russells… Peachy.

"Shoosh?" Russell exclaimed, shocked by how frivolous Eduardo made this argument. "Eduardo, why don't _you_ take her then, Mr. Shoosh?"

"Heck no!" he scoffed, resting his arms across his chest.

"Why me? How 'bout you, Thomas? I saw ya talkin' to 'er. Nate? You brought her up here," Russell tried desperately. He just couldn't live with a woman. That's never even been an option in his mind. It was too horrible of a thing to suggest.

"Live with it, Russ. Captain's orders," Nathan sighed, rolling his eyes at the immaturity Russell had. Maybe he shouldn't have the girl with him. It was obvious that Russell couldn't handle it. Then again, neither could Nate, so in the end it worked out for everyone else.

"Aw crud," he sulked, encasing himself in pity.

"Oh geez," Rose whispered, looking around the ship. _Did I really cause all this chaos? They can't call me out on being responsible for this, can they?_

"To hell with it," Russell inhaled, steeling himself for the next words to escape his mouth. "You, over there!"

"Y-yes?" Rose immediately stood to attention. It was obvious that the time to argue was over and the time for being a good girl was in order.

"Come with me, I'll show ya my room." He sighed in defeat, slightly dropping his head. What did he get himself into? Russell walked up to her and studied her face for a while as she only stared back. He witnessed as the emotions of the past few minutes melted away and a small, genuine smile curved into her cheeks.

"Thanks," she said quietly, seeing as how his expression seemed to melt as well. They both knew that if they were going to bunk together, might as well get used to it.

"J-just move." Russell tried to remain aloof, but when a girl smiles, it

makes it hard to do so. They moved in silence until they reached his door. It looked like all the other doors so Rose knew she'd have to make sure not to confuse one with the other. That would be embarrassing.

"Well, this is my room," he mumbled, flopping his arm around unceremoniously to signify the room.

"It's bigger than I thought," she commented, basing her knowledge off of pictures she saw and rumors she heard.

"Yeah, well, there's only the six of us here. The ship could hold more people, but since we don't need that, the cap let us knock down a few walls to live as we like," he explained monotonously.

"So, um, where do you take a shower?" Rose was already storing in information. She can't forget a single detail in case it might come in handy.

"Over there." Russell pointed to a room near his. He nodded his head to tell her to follow, and she did without complaint.

"You share the shower room?" Rose inquired, seeing that there was only one bathroom.

"Whaddaya expect? Water is our life line on board. Ya gotta conserve water," he scoffed like that was basic knowledge. Truth be told, he was questioning that on his first day on the ship, but he never had the gall to show his idiocy.

Rose felt the lashing bitterness in his answer and deflated from it. He really didn't have to be so crude. It was just a question. "You're right." Rose was clearly in defeat. If he wasn't going to try to be nice, then she'd just have to take all the work for herself.  
"Yo!" Eduardo called from down the hall.

"Hm?" Rose questioned, turning to look behind her.

"What do you want, Eduardo?" Russell asked, folding his arms and leaning against the doorway.

_These men,_ Rose concluded, _are so mean._

"Clean the bath as long as you're showing it," Eduardo ordered, going on his merry way once that issue had been dealt with.

"Why should I?" Russell stopped Eduardo in his tracks.

"Nobody else'll show her how to clean the bath, so you gotta do it."

"Um, actually, I already know how t—," Rose tried, getting shot down as they talked over her.

"Thomas should be doing this!" Russell fought back.

"He's busy cleaning the dining room. Party's over because of this woman," Eduardo spat, annoyed with the newcomer.

"What? Because of me?" she repeated, depressed that she caused most of this…_ all_ of this. "I didn't mean to."

"Shut up, I'm taking the rap here." Russell scolded her like what he was doing was something chivalrous. "Do I have to?" he whined to Eduardo.

"At least just do it this time. The woman'll take over after ya teach her. And don't do a sloppy job. Ya never clean the tub right." Eduardo just loved teasing Russell.

"Shut up!" Russell was not at all thrilled to be where he is now.

Rose was still stuck in her own little world, feeling absolutely horrible for what she did. Was it her that forced Russell to skip his dinner? She never meant for her presence to be such a hassle.

"Russell, look, I know we started off on the wrong foot, but I'm so sorry. I really didn't mean t—," she started, getting cut off by his ranting.

"Really? Why'd ya have to pick me?" He didn't care if Eduardo could hear him from all the way down the hall.

"I told you before! I—," she tried explaining, her eyes starting to water. "I didn't even mean to get on board in the first place." Rose turned to hide her face. Thankfully, Russell was pretty dense in the subject matter of women. He didn't notice her eyes welling up. Now was not the time to cry, not in front of pirates. Not at all.

"Oh well. It's done anyway." Russell softened his voice catching the gist that she was getting depressed. He wasn't a complete idiot. "Hey," he said to catch her attention, "the bath's this way."

Maybe they _could_ live with each other.

"All right," Rose agreed, placing back a smile on her face. She noticed how, when everyone else is gone, he was much softer. Maybe not by a lot, but any softness was welcomed with open arms.

They entered the room and he began pointing things out.

"Bath tub is here. Those are used to clean the tub. Toilet bowl's over there," he trailed off when he saw how she was preoccupied with something. "What's wrong?"

"Where's the lock?" she asked innocently, checking the door.

"Who needs a lock?"

"_I_ kind of need a lock." Rose stated obviously.

"Why?" Russell asked… obliviously.

"Well, if you haven't noticed, since I've explained it many times before, I'm not a guy. I'm not all that comfortable with that off-chance awkwardness." Rose ran through worst case scenarios of her accidently barging in on someone bathing. That would be the death of her.

"Oh, I get it, you're afraid someone getting a peek at ya?"

"Yeah, well, that too. I'd also like to avoid the other way around," she tried spelling it out more, seeing as how slow to point this man was.

"Huh, who cares if you see us naked?" he stated bluntly. "And we don't give a shit if even you're naked." Now that he thought about it, maybe he could try timing—What? What was he thinking? No way he'd intentionally do that!

"Wow, uh, I'm not exactly sure how to take that," she stated, wide-eyed.

"Take it however ya wanna, I don't care. We still gotta clean this place up," he said to completely change the topic. This was starting to get awkward.

"R-right, of course."

* * *

**_~Don't be a stranger ;D_**


	4. Scrubbing Toilets

As they were about to finish cleaning the entire room, Russell dared to break the silence they were in.

"Phew, that's about it. Hey," he said to catch her eye. He watched at how her small body twisted gently to address him. "You're actually pretty good at this."

"Yeah, well, I've been cleaning all my life, whether I like it or not." She sighed, resting on her heels instead of her knees. It's been awhile since she had to crouch down to clean.

"You're forced to clean? Were you some kinda maid?" Russell stopped his scrubbing and leaned against the tub.

"No, not really. You know that bar in Yamato where you rescued me from those thugs?"

"I still don't remember rescuing you."

"I guess it was only Eduardo that saw me." She shrugged, continuing with her story. "Well, my family isn't exactly the richest so I had to work there from a very early age. The owner said once I've completely grown into a woman, he'd let me work the night shift with the other women."

"You're a stripper?" Russell asked wildly, feeling the wind taken out of his lungs.

"No, no, no!" Rose exhaled, shaking her head at the misconception. "We aren't strippers. The owner isn't that kind of guy, he's actually pretty nice. No, our bar has a show every night where there's either a dance routine or someone singing just to bring in business."

"Oh, so it's like a cocktail bar," he guessed, more relaxed about this realization.

"I guess, but it's not that fancy. I mean, you saw how run down it was. Burlesque would be a better word. Anyway, he said he'd let the girls start teaching me on what to do. Sadly, instead of rehearsing with them, I'm misplaced on a ship with a destination for treasure," she smiled.

"Hey, a pirate ship ain't all that bad. Ya just have t' find your place. What were they gonna teach ya? You a singer?" Russell completely captivated by this. He didn't really care for the bathroom anymore, or the fact that he was forced to clean it.

"Oh, singing?" Rose thought about it for a while and shook her head. "Nah, I'm no singer," she lied. "But I am a dancer."

"Really? I thought you might be. You walk like one."

"I walk like one? How so?"

"You walk like you're ready to fly away or something. You're so light on your feet." His hand flew up to reinforce his description.

"Oh, well I guess that's a good thing to have since I'm on a ship, right?"

"Nah, not really. When you're on a ship, you're gonna want to have a solid ground or else you'll be victim to falling off the edge," he informed. Suddenly, her face kinda fell, making him weird inside.

"Oh, I guess I might not make it to the next port then."

"Not true," he said, coming to the rescue. "If ya feel like you're fallin', just hold on t' me. I've got experience with walking around this place." When he saw that bright smile, that weird feeling left him as soon as it came. _What was that?_

"Thanks," she said simply. Seeing that their job was done, Rose stood and for the first time, she noticed how light she was. Her feet barely made a sound against the tiled floor.

Russell was watching, too. He saw how she practically flew to her feet. So engrossed was he that it was a minute too late before he spotted something wrong.

"Hey, wait, don't step on the—!"

"Whoa!" A lone soap bar had found its way under her foot, making Rose fall directly onto her back. With desperate attempts, she grabbed at anything that might slow down her fall. Somehow, she yanked at a lever that was attached to the bath tub. It didn't save her from falling, but it did do _something_.

The shower head was pointed directly at Russell when he made a move to catch her, so naturally, the water fought off his attempts at saving his roommate.

"Damn, it's cold!" he exclaimed, gasping for air.

"Oh no!" Rose exclaimed, trying to climb back onto her feet. The combined water and soap around her ground made her slip again, pulling yet another lever.

"Why, you little..." Russell threatened, still trying to reach for some stable ground.

"Ah! How do I turn this thing off?" Rose grunted, drowning in a little puddle of death water.

"Just flip the—!" As he said that, she flipped the lever… in the wrong direction. She slipped once more in the puddle, drenching both the front and back of herself. "Damn it, woman! Wrong way!"

"I'm sorry if gravity doesn't like me!" she argued back sarcastically, shouting over the rush of water.

"You idiots!" someone shouted, reaching out to stop all flow of water. "I knew I couldn't trust you with this, Russell."

"What? Eduardo, me? But she was th—!" Russell argued, pushing back his drenched hair that stabbed his eyes.

"As far as I'm concerned, you should have known better. You know how valuable water is on this ship!"

"I…" Russell tried but knew he had nothing against that.

"No, don't yell at him," Rose stated, squeezing the water from her dress. "It-it was my fault. I accidently turned the shower on. Russell was just trying to help me turn it off. It's my stupidity that caused this mess."

"What are you doing?" Russell whispered to her, fully aware that it should be him saying those words.

"Taking the rap," she informed smoothly.

"You know Captain actually buys tub water," Eduardo said to make sure there was enough emphasis on the matter.

"I understand. I can clean up the mess myself… without water," Rose offered, dropping her head in shame.

"What? You can't take all the blame. I shoulda warned ya. Besides, I'm not lettin' ya clean this room alone. Who knows what might happen to ya," Russell said strongly, using his tone to make clear that he wouldn't have it any other way.

"Hold it right there." A new voice spoke, taking in everyone's eyes.

"Christopher?" Russell inquired, wondering what he's got to do with any of this.

"Oh, fer cryin' out loud. I came to check on you guys," he said, obviously annoyed, but he still maintained that caring smile. He truthfully found this situation to be kind of funny.

"Ah, Doc, these two were—," Eduardo started, ready to place the blame.

"Eduardo, let 'em go," Christopher sighed. "It's partially our fault, anyway. We didn't totally explain things to Rose, did we?" He was just trying to find an argument to get these people out of here. Those two were going to catch a cold if they sat there longer with drenched clothes.

Eduardo only tsked at the doctor's words. He was right, sadly. No punishment for today.

"I'm sorry, I should have known how important water is," Rose said, akin to how a child would beg forgiveness. She was really playing it up for these people. If they were going to see her as an innocent child, then by all means, she'd be one. It's best to have everyone underestimate than to overestimate.

"Hear that, Doc? She said she should'a known," Eduardo tried, squeezing whatever he could out of this.

"Drop it, you," Chris huffed. "That's all right, Rose. Just don't do it again. You on the other hand," he addressed Eduardo, "stop being so cruel to her." With that, he followed the scold with a smack to the back of Eduardo's head.

"Augh, what was that? She gets a 'don't do it again' and I get a slap? Where's the justice in that, Doc? Where's the justice?" Eduardo complained.

"Quit your whining, you sound like a kid," Chris teased.

"No, I do not," he grumped, crossing his arms and setting his face into a deep frown.

"You, Russell," Christopher called, scratching the back of his neck habitually.

"What?" he answered with little respect.

"Why don't ya give Rose something t' wear? Isn't it your fault that we can see through her blouse?"

"What?" Rose squeaked, quickly moving her arms to cross over her chest. She could feel the heat blast on her cheeks, especially since the water nearly froze her body. The fact that everyone was now trying to look at her made it worse.

"Aw, look, Rose's embarrassed," Chris stated, like saying you could see through her clothes wasn't bad enough.

"Only because ya pointed it out, Doc," Eduardo answered, shaking the doctor by the shoulder. Chris had been known to be a little spacey now and then. This was another one of his moments.

"Should I have pretended I didn't see?" he asked innocently.

"No, I don't mean that," Eduardo sighed, placing his face in his palm.

"Okay, we're done here. We should really get going. Come on, you," Russell snapped abruptly, pulling the small woman behind him.

"Whoa, all right." His hand was so much warmer than hers. And for some reason, she couldn't get her teeth chattering down. Who knew it would be this cold on a ship at night? Okay, even she knew that.

He dragged her to the room and pulled out a towel, tossing it in her arms.

"Dry yourself off with this," he stated, not caring that he nailed her in the face.

"Thank you," she said, regardless.

"And here are some clothes. They're the smallest I got," he said, handing these more gently to her. Of all the crap he's given her until now, how had she dealt with it so calmly? It's like the woman he knew earlier tonight changed into this much more manageable lady. Was it the water?

"Thanks," Rose said again as she placed them on the nearby nightstand. She bent forward to rub all the water out of her hair, whipping her head back up after she was done.

"Whoa, that looked cool," Russell smirked.

"Really? I never thought about it," Rose hummed, smiling as well.

"I'll be outside so change quickly," he said curtly, snapping back to his rude persona. He can't be too nice to this girl, she might start expecting it.

"But, Russell, you're drenched, too."

"So change _quickly_," he repeated with a hint of annoyance.

"Geez, sorry for worrying," Rose mumbled, knowing full and well that he could hear her. Once he left the room, she peeled off the dress and threw it in a corner. Rose looked down and saw that she was still wearing her dance leotard and quickly tried to take that off. It was nearly impossible to do since the water glued it to her skin. Once that was gone, sadly, she had to take her undergarments off as well.

Naturally, this wouldn't be such a big deal if she wasn't surrounded by six men and was forced to sleep with one. But this was only temporary, for a day at the most.

As quickly as she could, Rose slipped on the clothes Russell gave her. It was still pretty big, but nothing a sash could fix. The pants fit her comfortably at least. Her outfit looked similar to what Russell usually wore. Then again, pirates weren't really the ones to be trend setters.

"Russell, I'm done," she called, wondering what to do with her shirt.

"Damn you're slow. What if I caught a cold?" he asked bitterly, not really meaning the words he said. But for some reason, he just felt like distancing himself.

"S-sorry. I'm a girl, it takes longer for me to dress up," she reasoned.

"You need something to tie around your waist? I can see your chest from here," he commented, noticing how his usually low cut shirt exposed a little too much of her.

"Um, yes please," she muttered silently, embarrassed from his abrupt comment. There really wasn't any other way he could have phrased that? "Why are all your shirts cut so low?" she asked, curious to the reason. In fact, most of the men had low necklines.

"It gets hot on the deck," he said simply. Russell watched as she took the sash, wrapped the vest tighter around herself, and tried tying it all together. She struggled somewhat since she probably needed four hands to do this correctly. "Agh, I hate seein' ya struggle over something so easy," he complained, taking the sash from her. "Pull the vest tight," he instructed.

"Sure," she breathed, feeling weird at how close he was getting. Rose tightened the long vest and lifted her arms enough for him to thread the sash through. He practically hugged her for a split second and that caused Rose's cheeks to turn pink.

"Is this too tight?" he asked, oblivious to her predicament.

"No, it's fine." Once he finished tying the sash around, he looked straight in her eyes.

"W-what's wrong?" she asked, conscious of just about everything now.

"You're soft," he stated bluntly.

"Um, thank you?"

"You remind me of dough. You're really squishy," Russell continued, oblivious to her feelings.

"Is that your way of calling me fat?" she asked, trying not to be offended. But seriously? Who _says_that?

"No, you're not fat, just squishy. Like a pillow almost."

"I—um, all right." Rose had no clue how to return something like that. As she stumbled over her words, a loud flop snapped her out of her thoughts. It appeared to be Russell's clothes piled right on top of hers. She turned to him and saw him half naked. "Ack!" Rose did her best to avert her eyes.

Russell heard her mini outburst and faced her. She was making a very different face than what he's seen before. It was cute enough to make him laugh at her. "What's wrong?" he chuckled.

"Oh, well, um… you know," Rose spoke casually. She could have been talking about the weather with that kind of tone.

"What? Never seen a guy naked?" he teased, amused by her innocence.

_No, I've seen one,_she wanted to answer. But these guys seemed to treat her gently when she appeared to be pure. "Well, that's not exactly… um…" she mumbled. "You want me to just leave? I can wait," she suggested.

"For cryin' out loud, we're roommates now. Just get used to it," he spat, already done changing. But Rose didn't know. He took this time to look at her again. She was avoiding eye contact with her back against the wall and her head pointed at the ground. Russell walked up to her and nudged Rose's face towards him. He felt the hesitation in her movements. "I'm done," he teased, "don't have to be so scared."

"Y-yeah," she coughed, inserting her hands into her large sleeves; her body was still cold. Rose just prayed that she wouldn't have to do something as embarrassing as that again. It wasn't that easy to just get used to dressing up in front of someone.

"Well, it's been a long day. I'm going to sleep," Russell announced, scratching his head.

"Um, about that…" Rose trailed, looking awkward again.

"What's your problem, now?" He rolled his eyes at her. "Are ya sexually frustrated or something? Do ya need to sleep out on the deck?"

"That's a joke, right?" she deadpanned, too tired for his words.

"I don't know with women!" he exclaimed, throwing his arms over his head. "Maybe you're expectin' something from me, but let me tell you now, I don't really care about you." This woman needed to know that without a hint of doubt, he would not allow any tomfoolery around this ship. He's worked too hard to be slowed down by a woman.

"Hey, don't get me wrong, I'm not interested in you either," Rose agreed, glad to have that off her chest. As long as they had a strict acquaintance-only relationship, she had nothing to worry about. It just meant that she'd live to see another day. _He still didn't need to say it like that, though. Jerk._

"Well good. Night." He dropped onto his bed.

"Whoa, I wasn't done," Rose spoke up, stopping him from lying down.

"Ugh, what is it now?" Russell rested with his palms supporting him.

"Well, where do_ I_sleep?" she asked, looking around the room to see if there was any other bed. There wasn't much of anything, not even any windows. How disappointing.

"On the floor," he scoffed, enjoying the way her eyebrows jumped.

"The _floor_?" If she had her way, her gums would've been flapping a mile a minute, telling off this egotistical idiot. Sadly, she was raised to respect others. Also, she had no clue how much authority Russell had.

"Got a problem with that, Nerissa?" he asked, foolishly using her given name.

"I've got a problem with that name; that's one thing," she immediately snapped. Rose glided straight up to his face, pointing a menacing finger at him. She didn't care if he would slice her up right now. No one had the right to call her Nerissa. "You are not allowed to call me that, got it?"

"Whoa, okay, got it!" he exclaimed, unprepared to have her be so close so soon. How'd she do that?

"And I've got a problem with sleeping on the floor, too," she tried, cheekily sneaking that in, but even Russell was sharp enough to catch that.

"What problem do you have with that?" he scoffed, pushing her finger away.

"What problem?" she reiterated sarcastically. What kind of idiot…? "Do you have something I can _put_on the floor?"

"You… what?" he chuckled. She was making crazy demands. "If I need to remind you, this is _my_ room. Your name is one thing; that belongs to you. But this room belongs to _me_."

"Yeah, I know," Rose agreed, wanting to just get straight to the point already.

"And it's my damn right to sleep in my bed, isn't it?" he continued, dragging out the purpose of all this.

"Well, yeah, you're right, but—"

"And who's the one who has nowhere else to turn to?"

Rose sighed, crossing her arms and turning her gaze elsewhere. "Me," she muttered in defeat.

"I won't treat ya special like everybody else does," he announced, getting that feeling again in the pit of his stomach when he saw her in that kind of a mood. Russell chose to ignore it though. It was probably new crew jitters.

Rose had a different feeling, in the base of her neck. She felt that if she talked, her voice would sound heavy and her eyes might spring leaks. Russell was just so… so mean. But she can't let him see her so vulnerable, he'd just yell at her for that.

"Fine," she said curtly, sharply. She could have cut an elephant in two with the dagger in her voice.

"What'd ya say?" Russell asked, wanting to revel in this moment.

Choking back the tears, she channeled a different source of energy and glared at him. "I don't need it!" she yelled.

"What are ya talking about?" Russell muttered, lost with her thoughts.

"I never_ wanted_you to treat me special!" she snapped, witnessing how she shocked him into a silence.

That feeling in Russell's stomach didn't want to go away. In fact, it grew bigger, and it made him feel horrible. How could he get rid of it?

"I just… I just didn't want to sleep on a bare floor. But you know what, if you're having difficulty with accepting the fact that it's not _safe_, then I'll just sleep on it anyway. Anything to make Russell happy, because in your world, my life doesn't matter. I could jump ship and you wouldn't care." Rose stopped her flow of words in case tears were to follow.

Russell regarded this woman. He slowly sat straighter, quietly so as not to alert Rose. She was pouting. He had to admit, it was cute… in a kid sort of way. Suddenly, he figured out a way to get rid of that sick feeling in his stomach.

He began chuckling.

"Even if you laugh at me…" Rose started, but when she turned to glance at Russell, she saw something new. He was… smiling?

"Ha, ha! Now you're all angry," he snickered, peeking to see if she changed her position. Nope, not yet. Looks like he'd have to keep going.

"I-I'm not angry…" Rose grumbled.

"That's great!" Russell continued, choking out laughter. "I've never been yelled at by a woman before."

Was he really getting worked up just because she scolded him? Rose was sure something smelled fishy but wasn't aware of it just yet.

"Go ahead, you can take the bed," he sighed after sobering up. This way, it seemed that he wasn't just being nice. Russell had an image to keep up. He watched her eyebrows jump again, but this time, her frumpy frown left, replacing itself with a smooth look. _What the…? What just happened?_The weird feeling… it was gone again.

"W-what?" she squeaked, dropping her defenses.

"A blanket was enough for me anyway," Russell shrugged.

"You-you mean it?" Rose asked, testing the waters. Was this another joke?

"Well, yeah. You're picking a fight with me. Not many people have the balls to do that. So I'm giving you the bed." His plan was working, she wasn't frowning anymore.

"To be frank, I don't have any balls at all," Rose stated kiddingly, a small smile dancing across her face.

Russell seemed collected on the outside, but was inwardly beaming. He got her to smile again. If that meant giving up his bed, he didn't mind.

_What am I thinking?_ _I'm going soft. Stupid woman._

He stood and ripped the blanket off. As Russell walked towards Rose, he ruffled her hair a bit, chuckling at her.

"You're funny. Maybe you won't be a waste on this ship."

That may have been mean, but Rose felt that he really didn't intend to offend her this time. He just didn't know how to talk to her, that's all. At least Russell seemed to open up a bit. Rose was unaware that he laughed so much, just like her. It was rare that she went more than ten minutes without a smile.

"Think so?" she asked, kicking off her shoes and laying on the bed.

"Yeah, of course. I haven't laughed like this fer so long… Maybe me an' you will get along just fine." He laid down near the bed and looking up at her.

"Really?" she smirked, hanging off the edge to make eye contact.

"Yup, you're like a man anyhow," he said sincerely. Russell watched the smile on her face drop as she rolled over and disappeared from his sight. Did he say something wrong? "Hey, what's wrong with ya?"

"I'm tired. Good night," Rose bid curtly, shutting her eyes tight. _How am I going to make it out of this?_

* * *

_**~Don't be a stranger ;D**_


	5. Falling on the Job

Russell stretched on the hard ground. His back cried out to protest the movement. Why the hell was he sleeping on the ground? Did he fall again? Russell groaned, sluggishly picking himself up. He grabbed the blanket from the floor and moved to jump back into his bed.

_Wait, what?_ Something was on his bed. It was curled up like a little puppy, with gentle breaths heaving in its back. _Oh, right, the girl._She looked so peaceful sleeping there. Russell felt like the world didn't matter anymore. There were no longer any hardships in her aura of peace. So, obviously, the most logical thing to do was…

"Oy, get up! Woman! Get… up!" he yelled, shaking her shoulder violently.

"Mmm," she complained, hiding deeper into her blanket.

"Ugh, idiot," he cursed, gripping the ends of her blanket and whipping it off, startling the small human in his bed. "Get up, lazy!"

"Gah," she gurgled, assimilating with the morning time. Rose started sarcastically "Well, good morning to—"

"I don't have time for your wit. Just get up and come to the deck right now," he snapped, tossing the blankets to the side.

"Hmm? What do you need me for?" She sat up straight to stretch her arms.

"The hell? H-hey, what are you doing?" Russell asked, blushing heavily. He wasn't used to waking up to this kind of image.

"What do you mean?" Rose asked innocently. All she did was stretch, what was so bad about it?

"Whatever, it doesn't matter. Yer part of the crew now so ya gotta work like everyone else. That means waking up when I do." He refused to look Rose straight in the eye.

"Work?"

"I thought you didn't want to be treated special?" He saw Rose bounce to her feet, ready to leave. How did she do that? It usually took him at least ten minutes to be completely awake.

"You know that's not what I mean." Rose sighed, quirking an eyebrow. She walked behind him, watching Russell laugh at her.

"Yeah, yeah, I know. I'll find something for you t' do. Don't worry about that." The grin on his face widened deviously.

"Oh, I should have kept my mouth shut," the woman hummed, smiling at his chuckles. Rose liked hearing his laughter. It made her feel like she'd been let in on a secret that only they shared.

Russell looked around the ship once they hit the sunlight. Going through his list of chores, he decided on starting with the worst job to get it over with… and to give Rose most of the work.

"All right, looks like we're cleaning the deck. Here, take the brush and start there," he pointed, splitting the deck in half. She could handle that, right?

"Yes, sir," she agreed, dipping her head and snatching the brush. Rose was glad that this was her task. Cleaning was something she could do without fail. This was the time in her life where all the rough hours at the bar finally paid off.

"Sir?" Russell thought to himself after he watched her move to the opposite side of the deck. "That's new," he chuckled.

Halfway through cleaning, Rose stopped and rested on her heels, wiping the sweat off her brow. It must have been at least half an hour and she still wasn't done. The deck was bigger than she was used to.

"Hey, I didn't tell ya t' stop," Russell called, secretly tired as well. But it didn't take as much a toll on him as it did on her.

"Sorry, Russell. I was just breathing for a second." She bent back down and scrubbed once more.

"You can breathe while scrubbing can't ya?" he asked, merely teasing now.

"Hmph," Rose grumbled, sounding indifferent for all the world to hear. "Russell, can I tell ya something?"

"What?"

"It's hard to tell the difference between when you're joking and when you're just plain dense." She wondered if that was forward enough for a man of his type.

Russell stepped back from the weight of her words. Was that really how people saw him?

Rose's back was facing him so he didn't care what he looked like. But if she did see him, that would be a moment of shame. Deciding not to let any weakness show, he played on her words, twisting them for his own good.

"Well, I guess that just means you'll have to work hard to keep up," he snorted, swiping the mop around. His back started hurting because he slept on the floor last night. The fact that he'd been standing for a good span of time wasn't helping. Maybe he could switch with Rose just to be in a different position.

Should he ask her?

"Yeah right," he scoffed to himself. "Hey, Nerissa," he called, forgetting her little rule. When Russell turned around, she was right in front of his face, glaring holes through his head.

"What did you just call me?"

"Um-uh, n-nothing. Called ya woman, like always," he stuttered, almost tripping on his feet as he backed up.

"Good, that's what I thought you said." She turned to go back to her cleaning. Maybe she had better make her point clearer next time. It seems that Russell was the type to constantly forget the important details.

"Hey, um, you," he tried again, flinching when she faced him. Russell relaxed now that she didn't look like she was about to kill him.

"Yes?" she answered politely, as if the last few seconds didn't happen.

"Why won't you let people call you Nerissa? Do you hate someone named Nerissa?" He prayed that he didn't say the wrong thing.

_Hate someone? Well…_Rose wasn't willing to answer this. She couldn't just tell people this kind of information. It was too personal. But of course, Russell was the one person who didn't really understand the borders of 'mine and yours.' Rose needed to think her way out of this.

"Ungh," she groaned, loudly enough for him to hear but softly enough to make it seem natural.

"What's wrong with ya?" he asked gruffly. She looked fine to him.

"O-oh, it's um, nothing," she lied quickly, waiting for him to nibble the bait.

"Don't you tell me it's nothing. I need t' know if yer in pain," he demanded in a rough voice.

"Um, well, it's just, my neck kinda hurts from being like this for so long," she informed, waiting for his line.

"Bah, women. So weak," he spat, thankful that she gave him something to work with.

"N-no, it's okay. You don't have to hear me complain. I'll just—"

"Well, if you're gonna beat yourself up so much about it then come here," he ordered, watching her scamper towards him. Russell grabbed the deck brush from her hand and switched it with the mop.

"S-sorry," she whispered, smiling a devious smirk when she faced the other direction.

"Just shut up this time. I don't want to hear your complaining while I work," Russell spoke, sighing silently as his back stretched when he got on his hands and knees.

Rose was on the other side, mopping in small circles and hopping a space over to start again.

Circle, hop, circle, hop.

Swish, click-click, swish, click-click.

Her feet made soft tapping and accompanied the mop well. Soon, after ten minutes of circles and swishes, Rose began to hum, adding a few extra clicks to complicate the rhythm.

Russell stopped scrubbing when he witnessed her doing her small dance with the mop. He heard a soft melody and found out it came from her. It sounded so beautiful, so delicate. How could she say she's not a singer? It sounded perfect. He especially liked the way her feet either hopped or dragged to compliment her humming. For whatever reason, he ached to hear her voice. To listen to the words of that song. Humming wasn't enough for Russell, he longed for more. When it looked like Rose's lips were about to part out of the way for a delicate lyric, it all stopped. Rose gasped.

"Oh, I am so sorry," she started, planting her feet on the ground and begging forgiveness with her eyes. "I-I didn't mean to, please excuse me." Rose was thankful that she stopped before she sang a single word. She didn't want Russell to witness that. It would have been awful.

"What are you talking about? That was beautiful," he hummed in awe. Quickly, he caught himself and cleared his throat. "It reminded me of when I saw those little kids in school sing at a program. The way they were all jittery and quiet. Come to think of it, they were probably as squishy as you are," he laughed, enjoying the pout of her lip. It was fun twisting her face around.

"Well, if it was that bad, you wouldn't have been watching for an hour, now would you?" She focused on her mopping, thinking carefully about not dancing… and definitely not singing.

"What?" he yelled, making her jump in her spot. "I've been here for an hour?" How could he have lost track of time like that? Had she been humming for an hour?

"Um, yeah. I'm nearly done with my side. You still got halfway," Rose informed, gesturing to his wide expanse.

"Rose!" a voice called out, sounding appalled.

"Oh, Christopher, good morning," she bid with a smile.

"What are you doing?" he asked, walking briskly up to her.

Her response came without hesitation. "Just what it looks like, sir. Cleaning the deck."

Russell looked away for a second, a small pang in his ego. He had thought she only called _him _sir. It wasn't so special now that he knew she called everyone sir.

"Was I not doing it right? Russell's been here watching over me," Rose explained, hoping that she didn't disgrace anyone by her work. But she knew how to clean. There really wasn't any wrong way of doing so.

"Russell? Oh, he's… You! Get over here," he called to the blond man, a stern look set deep into his face.

"What?" Russell whined, dropping the brush and heading over.

"Why are you doing this? You should not make Rose work under the blazing sun!"

"Eh?" Russell was lost in where the doc was going with this.

"She's not even used to life on board yet. You gotta be careful with our Rose. Too much sun isn't healthy if her skin isn't accustomed to it." He faced Rose and tilted her head every which way to check for sunburns. Christopher inspected every inch of exposed skin for blotches of pink kisses from the sun.

"Wh—? Why should I?" Russell retaliated. This was absurd! Everyone can handle a little sun. Just because she was apparently a rose now doesn't mean she'd wilt under the heat.

"Thomas can clean the deck, can't he? You don't have to give her all the work," the doc sighed angrily. Russell was stuck in a silence, knowing that he can't speak out against that.

Rose didn't want to be the source of all the problems again. They really shouldn't worry so much. She's used to the sun. In fact, she ran under it most of her days.

"Hey, look, I—," she started, stopping when Chris' words crashed through.

"I'm sorry, Rose. You really shouldn't be doing this," he stated, placing a hand on her back to gesture her inside. "Go to Nate in the kitchen and ask him for something cold to drink."

This was humiliating. Sure, she'd allow them to underestimate her but not at something like this. It was like telling her that she was weaker than a common house maid!

"I'm fine, really," Rose protested, politely backing away from his hand.

"What?" Christopher asked, looking shocked at her. Russell seemed stunned as well. Was she trying to get him out of trouble again? For sure she wasn't okay. No one could assimilate that quickly.

"I don't mind cleaning the deck. It's actually not that bad. I clean for a living, it's second nature to me," Rose tried, gripping tighter on the mop. She needed to prove to everyone that she wasn't a burden.

"But, isn't the sun too strong for you? You really don't need to do this," Christopher offered, worried that she only said these things to seem tough.

"Please, Christopher. I've spent longer under the sun before. Adding cleaning to it doesn't make the task any harder." She used her voice to assure Chris.

"Well…"

"I'm not riding on this ship for free. I have to do _something_ to pay you guys back. Please?" Rose begged again. She was not about to let this situation drop. It was all a matter of principle to her.

"You… you really don't—," Russell began but stopped when he saw the determination in her eyes. He wouldn't stop her if she didn't want it.

"Rose," Christopher protested, rubbing his neck. This girl was too determined for her own good.

"Hey, if it gets too tough, I'll say something, promise. Besides, I'm not a dim woman. I know that if I risk myself, you'll just have to treat me in the end. I won't hassle you with that."

"Oh, you know I don't mind seeing you in my office. You smile bright enough to light my day." He patted her on the shoulder.

"Christopher, get your sappy words outta here. This ship ain't a place for that soft, mushy fluff," Russell barked, shooing the doctor off with a flick of the wrist.

"Hmph, Russell, Rose just saved your butt. I wouldn't get too cocky if I were you." Christopher chuckled, flashing a smile towards the girl. "All right then, I'll leave you two to your work. Rose, don't strain yourself, okay?"

"Of course," she chirped, dipping her head in respect. Once Chris was out of earshot, she turned to Russell with a simple grin. "Come on, I'll take some of your side. Might as well get it over with, right?"

"Y-yeah, get it over with," he mumbled absentmindedly. She just took the blame and is now doing more than her share. Yet Rose continues to take his harsh words and demeaning comments. Is there something he's missing?

* * *

"Hey, woman, I gotta check on something real quick, can you get this last spot? It's not that big," Russell asked, dropping the brush and cracking his back.

"Yeah, no problem," she nodded, dipping her mop in a bucket and swabbing in neat, little circles.

As she continued to work, the heavy thuds of footsteps approached her. Was it Russell? But his feet didn't sound like that. And he wouldn't have come back this fast.

"Who are you? Never seen ya before. Y'new?" a feminine voice called, making Rose spin to find the source.

A rather large, plump woman dressed in pink pirate garb greeted Rose's eyes. She had a pink bandana wrapped around her long, blonde hair.

"Um…" was Rose's response. Who… who was this woman?

"I'm Fuzzy," she answered, practically reading Rose's thoughts. "Why the hell are ya on this ship?" Her voice only had a hint of menace.

_No one told me about her, _Rose thought to herself, wondering why she didn't see Fuzzy in the first place.

"Answer me, damn it! Why?" Fuzzy screeched, breaking out of her seemingly composed state.

Her voice jolted Rose to stiff attention. She gripped her mop with white knuckles in fright. _This lady… is so intimidating._

"W-well, I'm Rose. Uh, came on board yesterday, miss," she spoke politely.

"Miss? That's cute," Fuzzy snorted. Right away, she hated this one. Too small and scrawny.

How could the others have let her on?

"I-I didn't know there was another woman on this ship," Rose informed, pulling out a friendly smile to try and break bread. "Captain didn't say anything about you."

"So?" Fuzzy asked, easing up on the barrage of hate. It tired her.

"Well, then I can room with you instead of Russell—"

"Hold it right there! What did you just say?" she threatened, stalking closer to Rose.

"Oh, um, just that I could stay in your room instead of Russell's. Unless you don't want that, I mean, I wouldn't want to impose," Rose tried, hoping that Fuzzy wouldn't sit on her or something.

"Impose?" Fuzzy yelled again.

_What's with this woman? She's PMS-ing like no tomorrow! _

"You're imposing by living, ya brat!" she screamed. "How dare ya share a room with Master Russell?" Now this little chicken was on her hit list. She would torture this Rose for invading her Russell's privacy

"Whoa, hold on, _Master _Russell?" Rose asked, regretting saying anything at all.

"That's it, bitch, you're finished! I'm sending ya t' hell!" Fuzzy was ready to end this child. Her heart hammered as the blood rushed to her face. Everything became blurry as her vision reddened. The grip on her sword was violent, and not even the lull of a calm ocean or the sweet smell of the sea salt could calm her down. Heads are rolling _today._

"Wait, what?" Rose wasn't answered as a sword was hacked in her direction.

"I—I've never even been invited into his bed! But-but you… YOU!" With another wave of blinding fury, Fuzzy swung again, cursing the girl for dodging her blade. Her feet began stomping towards Rose, rocking the boat in the ocean.

Rose tried standing her ground and matching strengths with her mop, but one move ended up slicing the cleaning utensil in two.

"That's like straw t' me!" Fuzzy hollered, charging at the girl. She hated how Rose's footsteps were practically soundless while hers probably alerted the entire crew.

Rose did the only thing she knew how in times like this… she ran. Deceivingly, Fuzzy was easily able to follow her, hacking relentlessly at the air between them. Using the strength and flexibility she had, Rose grabbed the rope sticking out from the mast and used her momentum to swing higher up the timber. She hopped up on the plank supporting the bottom of the sail and sat there, staring at Fuzzy.

"Oy you! Get down from there and face me like a real pirate!" Fuzzy taunted, using all she had to climb up the mast. "You ain't gettin' away from me!"

"Gah, calm down for Pete's sake!" Rose hollered. It felt weird being so high off the ground, it made everything so dizzy. Especially since this lady was shaking the mast. Any more of this and Rose would puke. She had to talk Fuzzy down _now_. "We're not even sleeping on the same bed!"

"No excuse! You can't even share the same air as him!" she cried out, fighting passionately for Russell. Fuzzy saw too many of her love interests being stolen by the younger and the smaller. There was no way she letting this one slip through her fingers. Finally, Fuzzy began climbing up to the top, whipping her sword around the puny girl. She managed to slice a few strands of hair off.

"Stop! Please!" Rose begged, not wanting to scream so unruly in case it would turn the situation for the worst. Like it could get any worse than this.

"Hell no! I'll kill ya, you tramp!" Fuzzy used her want to cry to fuel her anger.

"No!" Rose sprinted across the thin beam, climbing the rope ladder to get higher up the mast. Once she reached the top castle, Rose knew there was nowhere else to go. This was where she would die.

"I'll get ya! Don't think it's gonna be that easy!" Fuzzy threatened, sliding down the mast and rushing at it.

Rose was unaware at what Fuzzy was doing until the vibrations reached her little hidey-hole. She gripped whatever she could to stabilize herself. Was… was Fuzzy trying to knock her down?

She heard the sword come out and saw the pink pirate chopping down the mast.

"What are you doing? The ship needs that!" Rose called, wondering what kind of pirate this one was.

"Like I care, ya slut!" she returned slicing away.

"Hey! Stop!" a voice called. At the same time, Fuzzy let out a battle cry and swung with all her might.

Many things happened in that one swing. Rose fell from her perch, Fuzzy stopped swinging, and Russell began bleeding.

"Augh!" Russell yelled out, grabbing his arm. It was bleeding right through his shirt. He saw a small dot fall towards him from the sky. In an instant, he figured that it was Rose. How the hell did she get there?

The little woman did all she could to slow her fall. Reaching out for rope helped a bit, but it burned considerably. Instead, she took her leg and wound it around the rope, angling it so that she would slow down. It still burned but not as much as it did on her arms. There wasn't enough rope left for her to hang on to so at the last moment, she flipped over and expected to flop on deck.

But she didn't.

"Gotcha," Russell grunted as he caught her. In the next moment, he dropped her anyway since the strain on his arm was too much.

"Oof!"

"Ya deserved that," Fuzzy growled, looking back at Russell and his wound. "Master Russell," she cooed, gazing at him with gentle eyes.

"Ya bitch," he growled back, watching Rose stand up. She seemed very dizzy… and pale. "That was some fall," he commented, wondering just how she did that without pissing herself. He knew he would. But Rose went above and beyond in confusing him when she put aside her own worries and gasped.

"Russell, your arm," she stated, peeling his hand off to assess the damage.

"Gah, don't touch it," he growled, hissing at the pain.

"I'm not touching it," she snapped back. All the while, Fuzzy was in her own world, wallowing in self-pity.

"No! What have I done? His beautiful arm! I cut his beautiful arm! No!" she sobbed. Fuzzy tucked away her sword and ran for the edge of the boat, diving gracefully into the water.

"No!" Rose called, running after her. Though, unlike Fuzzy, Rose stopped before the water could touch her. "We have to help her," she cried to Russell, hoping that the woman would survive. Despite any bad feelings she had with Fuzzy, a life was a life.

"Really? After she chased ya to the top castle? And tried to kill ya? I saw it with my own eyes. You _fell _all that way," Russell exclaimed, eyes widening. Maybe Rose was a fairy… or a sea witch. That would explain her oddities.

"Fuzzy is still a person. Her life is important! Isn't that one of the rules of the Sirius?" Rose returned, running back to Russell. He _had _to help her.

"Nah, she's okay. I heard she beat a bear and a lion in a fight." He shrugged.

"Really? Did she?" Rose stopped in her jitters. This pirate was tougher than she thought.

"Ya can't kill her, even if you want to. Trust me, I want to," he mumbled.

"Hey." Rose smirked. She felt better knowing that this wasn't such a big deal. As long as Fuzzy's safe, all is fine. "Oh, you're arm. You gotta get that looked at, now," she recommended, going behind him to push him towards Christopher.

"Hey, I can walk," he protested, still allowing her to guide him.

"Be honest. If I wasn't doing this, would you have gone to see Doc?" Rose asked, watching the blood seep through.

"N-no," Russell sighed. Suddenly, he felt her grip on his back vanish. When he went to face her, she had disappeared from behind him and appeared at the edge of the ship. Rose was throwing up, most likely because she recently fell a few stories down. But one thing plagued him; she hadn't eaten yet. What was she throwing up?

"Ugh, gross," Rose sighed, hanging her head down for a while. All that came out was the retched taste of bile. She didn't even notice she wanted to heave chunks until everything calmed down.

"Hey," Russell called sweetly, rubbing her back.

Just when Rose thought he might say something to comfort her, he came out with—

"Don't get any of that on the deck. I just cleaned that spot. I'm not wasting my time doing it again." Then he slapped her on the back and went to go to Chris.

"Thank you so much," Rose droned sarcastically.

They entered the medical bay, searching for the man who could cure their ailments.

"Christopher?" Rose called, walking slowly so as not to disrupt her equilibrium again. Her head was still swimming and she felt that one wrong move could send her to the land of unconsciousness.

"Hello, Rose. What's up? Is Russell giving you a hard time?" Christopher asked comfortably. His smiling face dropped a millimeter lower when he saw the burns on her arms and the cut on Russell's.

"Russell, what did you do?" he scolded immediately.

"Wh—Me?" he cried, wondering what the hell just happened. "I didn't touch her, I swear!"

"I'll believe it when she tells me that," he sighed, ripping away Russell's hand and checking out the cut.

"Ow!"

"Quit your whining," he joked, watching Russell squirm. "I'll get back to you later. Rose, are you okay? Did he hurt you?"

"Come on, tell him. I didn't touch the woman," Russell defended.

"Well," Rose drew out, thinking about it.

"Hey!"

"Just a joke, calm down. You're not the only one who can tease people," Rose giggled, shaking her head. "No, Russell's been nothing but peachy, Doc. There was this rather large woman who attacked me. Fuzzy, I think?"

"Fuzzy did this?" Christopher asked with wide eyes.

"Damn right," Russell testified.

"But… I thought she liked you," the doctor spoke, grabbing the burn treatment. He relived the many moments where he saw the pink pirate ogle over the kid. "Stale love turned into bitter hatred, huh?"

Rose was snickering behind her hand. Fuzzy was in love with him? Talk about a living nightmare. But she wouldn't know. It's not like she had a set of stalkers for herself.

"Shut up, you," Russell growled at Rose, blushing at her laughter.

"Watch your tongue," Chris warned, pointing a knowing finger.

"It's okay, Chris. Russell here saved me," Rose told him, happy that no one was wrongly accused.

"He… he saved you?" the doctor asked, taken aback. That was something new.

"Yeah, I did," Russell agreed in a bored fashion. What significance was it? He just didn't want to see her hurt.

"I see, Russell. I see," Doc mumbled eerily, like he knew something the other two didn't. But he did. One thing was certain. Had it been Thomas in Rose's place, the poor greenhorn would have been left for Fuzzy to handle.

"Stop looking at me like that," Russell stuttered, blushing heavily from Doc's gaze. Why? He wasn't sure. It was either because he didn't like how Doc jumped to conclusions or how Doc knew the conclusion before he did.

Rose didn't like what the doctor was doing either. It was bad enough she was sharing a room with Russell, now there was going to be rumors? But of course, Rose remained the dim-witted, pure girl they were all familiar with. It was easier.

"What exactly did he save you from, Rose?" Chris asked her, only slightly teasing Russell now.

"Oh, from falling down the mast because Fuzzy was tryna hack it to the ground. That's how he got hurt," she informed simply, speaking as if this was a trivial matter.

"You fell from the mast?" Christopher gasped, dropping the ointment. "No wonder you're so pale. Have you eaten yet?" He rushed to her side after picking up the bottle and gripping her face in his hands.

"Well," she muffled from behind his palms, "not yet. I was going to go after visiting you."

"What?" he exclaimed again. "Rose, I don't want you to do that anymore. I don't care what Russell or even Captain says; you are to eat first thing in the morning before doing any chores." Christopher glared at the both of them. "I hope I don't need to remind you two but, Rose, you are not used to life on this ship. The best thing is to keep your needs satisfied until you are able to live like this. Got it?"

"Yes, sir," Rose spoke, looking at the ground.

"Yeah, Doc," Russell answered. After a small silence, Christopher sighed, addressing Rose.

"So, tell me, how did you get these burns?" Chris asked her hesitantly, dreading the answer. Trouble seemed to take a liking to this girl.

"Well, while I was falling, I tried slowing down. The rope burned my arms so I used my leg instead. Oh no!" she called out when she spied her pant leg.

"What is it? Did you hurt yourself again?" the doctor asked.

"No, Russell, I'm so sorry, I ripped up your pants," she apologized, ignoring the burns on her leg and tending to the frayed fabric.

"Eh, those didn't fit me anyway. They were gonna go to Thomas but you got 'em instead," he explained, still gripping his arm. Did the doctor forget about him? With his luck and Chris' combined, probably.

"I wouldn't worry as much about the clothes as the burn on your leg. Here, place this over all the rope burns. Then I want you out of here and in the mess hall, okay?" he directed, talking to her like a parent to a kid.

"Yes, sir," she repeated but cheerier this time. Once the doc turned to check out Russell's cut, she began applying the ointment deftly, wasting nothing.

"All right, Russell, let me see that cut. Take your shirt off," he said calmly.

"Ow," Russell whined quietly as the shirt inched away near the wound.

Rose rolled her eyes at the guys who had probably forgotten that she was there. She knew she was supposed to be some pure, angelic type girl, but she was getting tired of flinching every time these pirates showed some skin. Did they really have to disrobe so many times?

"Oh, it's deeper than it looks," Christopher mumbled. He looked up to see Russell biting his lip discreetly. "You don't need to act tough," he snickered.

"I ain't act—Ah, it hurts," he hissed when Doc barely touched it at all.

"You were saying?" he joked, dressing the wound.

"Uh, nothing," Russell coughed, letting the doctor work in peace. "Gah, Doc, can't ya be more gentle? That smarts," he groaned, biting the inside of his lip to distract the pain.

"Oh, Russell," Rose called out, seeing that his shirt had a large tear from where Fuzzy cut him.

"Huh, what?" he barked rudely, not giving her a second thought. At least until Doc began pressing into his wound. "Hey! That hurt! Ah, Doc, quit it! Yer hurtin' me!" he cried, shying away from those devil hands.

"Is that anyway to talk to Rose?" he asked, threatening the poor boy.

Rose wanted to laugh, noticing how Christopher may not have been as nice as he let on. She knew not to get on his bad side any time soon.

"Okay! All right! I'm sorry! What can I do for you, Miss?" Russell spat out quickly, still squirming under Chris' grip.

"Christopher," Rose scolded with a laugh, handing him back the ointment. "No need to make him wet his pants." The two laughed at Russell's expense, Christopher more than Rose.

"Hey!" Russell started, ready to mouth off at Rose. But then he caught Doc's glare. "H-hey," he repeated but with a different tone to make it less menacing.

"I was just going to ask if I could fix your shirt. Look at this, the rip is huge," Rose pointed out, tracing the line regardless of the blood. "And I know exactly how to get this stain out."

"You're too nice, Rose," Chris smiled. He saw how Russell was either ignoring her or just stunned by the offer. "What do you think, Russell?" he nudged, trying to get him out of his stupor.

"You-you don't have to do that," he muttered, hiding the pink dust creeping on his face. Russell hoped no one would notice.

"It's just a little token of my appreciation. You kind of saved me." She shrugged, a heartfelt gaze set.

"Well, it's not a bad idea. We rarely buy shirts anyway," Christopher agreed. He laughed inwardly at what he saw. It was so painfully obvious but neither of the two could even detect it. The youth are amazingly ignorant.

"Sure," Russell mumbled. "But you gotta eat something first! I'm not lettin' ya pass out on me," he scolded coldly. "And that shirt better be fixed up nice," he added, not wanting to show any thankfulness at all. He just wasn't born that way.

"Of course," Rose hummed, rolling her eyes for only Christopher to see. He choked back a snicker and watched her run off.

"It's pretty obvious, you know," he spoke knowingly to Russell, adding some numbing agent as he prepared to sew the wound closed.

"What's obvious?" Russell asked dimly.

"What you think of Miss Nerissa," Christopher chuckled.

"Don't call her that," he barked, sculpting his eyebrows into a scowl.

"Whoa, no need to get cold on me," Doc said, lifting a hand in defense. "Why? Is that _your _special name for her?"

"What?" Russell snapped a bit too quickly for his taste. He made it seem that he was trying to cover some sort of lie up, now. "No! I do _not _have a 'special' name for the girl. She just hates that name, is all," he explained. Russell averted his eyes from the doctor as the needle and thread came out of their hiding place.

"Really? Do you know why?" he asked, now only interested in keeping Russell preoccupied so that he wouldn't freak out over the needle. Chris didn't want to resort to suture but the blood kept rushing out. Probably a busted artery.

"No, I've tried asking, but she hasn't gotten the chance to telling me, yet," Russell sighed. He wanted to know more about her. Maybe if he knew more, she would smile more. He felt comfort in seeing her smile.

* * *

_**~Don't be a stranger ;D**_


	6. One Step Forward, Two Steps Back

_**~Recap~**_

_Rose is a sneaky, little, light-foot from Yamato who steals dance lessons and runs around the town. As she went to work one day, she was disturbed by a bunch of thugs. Luckily, two men who were later revealed to be part of a pirate ship, The Sirius, came to save the day. Rose found herself accidentally getting trapped on the ship these two men were from._

_Since there was no room for her to stay on the ship, she was forced to room with one of the men. Russell, a compulsive, arrogant, tsundere was whom she was to board with. He takes advantage of her presence and quickly hauls some of his workload onto her. At first, he was a jerk towards her, but soon enough, he starts warming up to her. Christopher, the warm-hearted doctor, senses Russell's unusual change in attitude, and sets out to tease him as much as the doc can._

_Suddenly, a rival pirate, Fuzzy, comes into play and hunts down the man she loves, Russell. She chased Rose around the deck, enraged by the fact that Russell had warmed up to the new girl rather than her. In her fury, she accidentally slashes Russell on the arm and jumps ship._

_And now, time for the story._

* * *

"Hello, Nathan," Rose greeted, taking a seat at the dining table.

"Hey, you." He stopped in front of her. "Heard you matched mitts with Fuzzy."

"Already? News spreads fast around here." Rose bashfully averted her eyes, praying to just avoid his questions. Who knew what kind of shame she could bring by telling him that she ran from Fuzzy instead of facing her head on.

"Nah, I heard that beast clomping on the deck. It's hard to miss Fuzzy. She's got a certain… presence." Nathan watched as the scrawny girl in front of him giggled silently. What was so funny? "I wasn't kidding," he said seriously.

"Ahem." Rose tried to hide her laughter with a feeble cough.

"Whatever. What do you want?" Nate was aware that she missed breakfast because of chores.

"Oh, you don't really have to serve me. I'm sure I can make myself something." She attempted being polite. It could get him off her case quicker.

"Are ya saying that you don't want my food?" He too major offense to this. H—How? No one rejected his food!

"What? No! Not at all! I—I just didn't want to trouble you. It seems as if everywhere I go, someone's paying for it. I hate being a burden," she admitted, fiddling with the hem of Russell's shirt instead of looking Nathan in the eye.

"Hey," he started softly, but she still didn't look up. "Hey, woman, pick your head up," he said again, rougher than the first time.

"Hmm?"

"If you don't want to be a burden then do me this favor." He saw that she was paying painful attention to his words now. "You gotta learn this now, and ya gotta learn fast. The only one who handles food is me, and all ya gotta do is ask me for something. Got it?"

"Yes." She nodded stiffly.

"I'd rather have you wake me up in the middle of the night than going to the kitchen yourself and getting something, okay? Besides, you shouldn't be eating unless it's mealtime." He looked at her to make sure she fully absorbed his words. "Anyway, Thomas has been helping me all morning so he hasn't eaten either." Nathan turned to face the kitchen door and hollered, "Oy, Thomas!"

"Yes, sir?" the man responded, quickly standing in the mess hall to attention.

"You can stop peeling veggies. Sit down and keep Rose here some company. What do you two want?" Nathan began heading to the kitchen.

"I can take leftovers from breakfast." Rose pulled her legs up to sit cross-legged onto the chair.

"Rose," Thomas chirped, tilting his head, "you can have anything you want. Nathan has literally everything!"

"No need to brag." Nate scoffed quietly, hiding a smile.

"It's okay. Waste not, want not, right?" Rose answered, hunching over to rest her chin on the table.

"Heh, good girl." Nathan breathily chuckled, sounding more like coughing than anything else.

"Well, in that case, I'll split the leftovers," Thomas chimed, sitting a chair over from Rose.

Nate looked at Rose and commented, "Maybe it wasn't a bad idea keepin' ya here, kid." With that, he disappeared behind the doors.

"Hey, Thomas," Rose hummed, tilting her head to look up at him.

"Yes?" He unknowingly tipping his head over in the same fashion as hers.

"Does Nathan ever smile?" she whispered, bringing her hands up to bury her face in them. After the events that happened recently, she found herself very tired.

"Well," Thomas started, thinking deeply about the past year he's been on the boat. "Um, I don't think so. Not a real smile. There have been evil smiles… and fake ones. It's rare to catch him smiling. Why?"

"Oh, it's nothing." Rose sighed and let her eyes droop shut. "I caught him smiling," she mumbled, widening her grin when she opened her eyes to his shocked face.

"What?"

"He was trying hard to hide it, but Nathan smiles with his eyes."

"H-how could you tell?"

"It's not the first time I've had to pick up on small details." The truth behind that was heavier than what she wanted to get into at the moment. Rose stopped her train of thought to yawn, arching her back.

"Miss Rose, are you okay? You seem awfully tired today." Thomas wondered what sapped her energy.

"Oh, it's nothing. I just had a weird morning." Rose cracked her eyes completely open and sitting up straight in her chair. "Hey, you think Nathan would mind if I asked for some lemons?"

"Why do you need lemons?" Thomas rested his head on a propped-up hand on the table.

"I got some blood on this shirt, and I know for a fact that lemons are perfect for the job," Rose relayed, taking out the shirt and spreading it in her arms.

"Miss Rose!" Thomas yelped, snapping of the table. "Is that your shirt? Did someone cut you?" he asked frantically, searching her arm for any bandages or blood.

"Oh, no, no, no!" she lipped, speeding through each no. "No, this is Russell's shirt. He's with Christopher right now getting patched up. All I have are these burns." She showed him her ointment slicked arms.

"What happened to you?" Thomas worriedly traced the intact skin underneath the burns.

"I'm sure you'll find out about it from someone else. Apparently, news spreads pretty fast around this ship." Rose gave a meek shrug of her shoulders.

"Well, it is just the six of us—er, well, I guess it's seven now." Thomas watched as she laughed. It was a light, airy laugh. The kind that wasn't at all loud or disturbing, or even striking and appalling to the ears. He was used raucous laughter, not really ever hearing how a woman laughed. He liked it.

"You're a good kid, Thomas. I like that about ya," Rose confided, folding up the shirt and placing it beside herself. "I just know that when you grow up and own a ship for yourself, every woman on the harbor will be begging to be your maiden."

Thomas thought about it and smiled proudly for a moment. Then the tips of his lips fell south as he analyzed her words. He almost didn't want to ask, but he really wanted to know.

"Um, Miss Rose?" he started but backed off right away. "No, never mind."

"No, come on, tell me. It seemed to be pretty important by the look on your face," she egged on, turning in her seat to face him.

"Well, I know you're older than me but… why do you talk to me like a child? I don't really appreciate it." He felt a bit awkward that he had confided that to her.

"Oh… I—Thomas, I don't see you as a child at all. But, I mean, it doesn't matter what your maturity level is. I don't think you have enough experience to run your own ship just yet, right? Not to be rude but you're a greenhorn. I do have faith that you'll be the best pirate out there, though." Rose should watch her mouth more often. That… that was extremely awkward.

"Well, thank you for your faith, but that's not what I meant. You talked as if everyone else would adore me… except you. Do… do you not like me, Miss?" Now that Thomas thought about it, his question sounded downright stupid. "I'm sorry, that was inappropriate for me to say. I don't mean to make it sound like I had feelings or anything," he quickly shot out, blushing profusely.

"Oh, no, I didn't take it like that. And you shouldn't either. Don't be so quick to judge me, Thomas. I have my reasons for talking like I do. I-um, I'm not the type to look into relationships like that. It's more complicated than it sounds but… I don't have any plans to pursue… love." Rose fell silent, thinking on something deeper than Thomas could understand. Her past was so confusing. It hurt her head just to ponder about it.

"Huh? But why? I thought it was every woman's dream to have a family." Thomas he was depressed now that she wasn't looking at him. Rose seemed to be preoccupied with some thoughts, lost in her own world.

"I'm not allowed to dream," she mumbled, feeling her eyes moisten. "Oh, I'm horrible for crying so easily."

"No, you're not." Thomas placed a gentle hand over her arm that was resting on the table. "You've gone through too much in the past day alone. You're entitled to tears."

Rose, too tired to explain and argue, merely smiled and looked up at the young man. "Thank you."

* * *

"Finally," Rose cheered, flipping the shirt to check her stitching. It wasn't like before, but it was good as new.

"Are you done?" Russell asked, reminding her that he was still in the room.

"Oh, Russell, sorry to keep you waiting." She handed the shirt to him.

"Bah, it's nothing. Let me see this." He pulled the shirt quickly on himself. Rose watched for any reaction as he judged her handiwork. "Hmm."

"Hmm?" she repeated, hoping he wasn't disappointed. Besides, she just spent a whole deal of time trying to get that shirt perfect! He better not make some stupid comment about it.

Instead of talking, Russell quickly looked at her face to see what it was set in. Once he saw the offended expression, he began to laugh. "I'm just teasin' ya," he joked, smiling genuinely when she chuckled along with him. "It looks nice. You did good." He thumbed through the stitching.

"Is that a compliment?" Rose was still trying to separate his blunt statements with his actual appreciation.

"Don't push it, woman." He shot her a glare. "But yeah, you're approved." Russell smiled again.

"Phew, I'm relieved," Rose kidded, sitting down swiftly in her spot. She watched him put on his vest, seeing the small struggle when threading his arm through. "How's your arm?"

"Huh? Oh, that. It's nothing. Chris was just tryna scare ya." He hid the gasp of pain he was holding in.  
Rose was no idiot—as much as she appeared to be—but even a dunce could see that he was ashamed of shame. Also, sound carries easily in that room; she heard the gasp.

"Is that right…?" Rose expertly replacing her snicker with a cough. She stood and walked past Russell to check the clothes he hung for her. They were still damp but clean nonetheless.

Russell gazed at Rose, seeing her inspect each article of clothing. Why did she have so many? Come to think of it, girls always wore the most complicated clothing. But if they would all stop with the layers and stick to the basics, they were sure to look better.

"Hey," he called, out of nowhere, enjoying the obedient way she turned her head to face him. "Come with me." He got off the bed he sat on and walking out the door. There was something she needed to see.

For a moment, Russell closed his eyes while walking, taking in the little things. Russell heard the sweet kisses of water to boat, a melody that was often replaying in his head. The salty air never ceased to amaze him, how it reminded him not of his hometown, but his home, on the ship, with all these people. Recently, there had been a new sound, a new scent. Behind him, he heard the light tapping of feet that could tell a tale or two for the world to hear. Above the feet came peaceful breathing of someone who was always experiencing something new. Along with the sound was the scent of something sweet, like the smell of the clear ocean twined with fruit of all kinds.

Rose followed silently, using her eyes to read the stories on the walls. There were a few trinkets here and there that spoke little of this ship's life. But on most of the walls were cracks and chips, maybe an occasional stain. Those told of the many battles, hardships, and good times these men must've had. To listen to one of their stories was a goal for Rose. She knew that their tales would be greater and less depressing than any of hers.

Russell was leading her outside, but Rose wondered why. Was something happening on the deck? Probably there was always a party or something; she still hasn't understood their captain. Rose was about to ask where he was taking her, but then she saw the look on his face that meant he was thinking about something. She liked that look, it suited him. It made Russell more respectable.

So caught up was she on the complexities of the human face that Rose hadn't notice that he stopped. She slammed gently into his back, making a small noise out of surprise. Her nose kind of hurt now. She wasn't expecting his back to be so sharp. These pirates were real body builders.

"You walkin' with your eyes closed back there?" he asked with a strict face, turning to check on her.

"Don't stop so suddenly like that. I wasn't exactly paying attention to where I was going." She resisted the urge to soothe her nose.

"You should be more attentive. Being an airhead gets you in trouble." Russell was unable to stop his natural defenses. He didn't want to be mean but for whatever reason, talking to this woman made him want to distance himself.

"Sorry," she apologized quietly. "You told me to follow you, so I did."

"But… you didn't even know where we were going," he stated, dumbfounded.

"But I trust you." Rose looked at him with childlike eyes. Did—Did she do something wrong?

Russell felt like reeling back with her innocent statement. She trusted him? That was the best and worst thing for him to hear. He felt amazing and strong inside, knowing that he gave her that kind of impression. Then, on the other hand, he felt scared and vulnerable. What if he made a mistake? And it cost him her life?

What was he supposed to think?

Instead of lashing out in rudeness or smiling in sincerity, he changed the subject. Russell looked up to the top castle and back at Rose.

"We're going up there," he spoke casually. "You can get up there, can't you?"

"Well, I've been there once, I'm sure I can do it again." Rose exhaled sharply, preparing to climb the rope ladder. She felt safer now that Russell was behind her, ready to catch her at any moment.

The second time going up there was considerably worse than the first. Rose had no adrenaline pumping in her blood, nothing to give her that primal edge. This seemed impossible! But they were already halfway there, she can't back down now. Maybe Russell was going to teach her how to spot land or something. Climbing was important.

In the spur of the moment, Rose's foot slipped out of its hold, making her drop a foot or two. With that accompanied a surprised chirp from the base of her throat. But wait… what stopped her from dropping all the way? Her foot was being held by something firm. A voice followed her suspicion.

"Be careful, you don't want to kill yourself," Russell warned, pushing her foot onto something it could hold. Rose's shoe felt different. It wasn't built like other shoes. He took a closer look as they continued climbing upwards. He'd just have to ask her later.

They made it up there with no other mishaps. Rose was panting slightly while Russell only cycled the air in and out once. He saw how her chest seemed to heave more than usual.

"Are you okay?" he asked, worried that maybe the slip scarred her for life or something.

"Yeah, I'm f… Whoa." Rose suddenly forgot that she was tired or that her arms hurt. She gazed beyond Russell's blond hair and walked towards the magnificent orb sitting on the water. Everything was a beautiful hue of orange. The sun danced on the horizon, swimming in the golden water. No other color seemed to penetrate this picture, making it feel like Rose was looking through an orange film. It… it was…

"Breathtaking, huh?" Russell smiled, looking out to where she was. "You don't get to see this anywhere else, only from a ship, right here on the lookout."

"That's… amazing," Rose hummed, feeling an odd pang in her heart. Was it…? No, couldn't be. It's probably just the sea.

"You like it?" He turned to see her glowing face. It was so pure, so thankful. He wanted to see that face more often.

"To be honest," she started, smiling from her lips to her eyes, "this is the first time I've seen the ocean as a magnificent place." Rose looked up at Russell, taking a moment to appreciate the way the orange glow formed a halo around his head, the silhouette bringing out the best of his green eyes.

"You didn't see it as a magical place before?" He leaned on the edge of the top castle.

"Oh, don't get me wrong, I've always known that the ocean is a magical place… but I've always been terrified of it. I never wanted to get too close. Only bad things ever happened out in the water." Unknowingly, she began hugging herself.

"But nothing bad's happened to you out here," Russell tried, wanting to keep that bright aura alive around her.

Rose wasn't talking about the bad things that happened to her. Still, she couldn't help but prove him wrong. "Really? There was the part about me being ripped from my home."

"Yeah, well, that's one thing—"

"And then there was the bathtub debacle."

"Okay, but—"

"Don't forget about Fuzzy."

"So you haven't had the best of luck," he spat out quickly to stop her listing. "But you have to admit, seeing this every day is sort of worth it." Russell sighed and looked back at the sun.

"Yeah, it is." She wasn't talking about just the sunset either. "So, why did you bring me up here? I thought I was a scrawny, lazy, stupid woman," she joked, gazing at his features. It looked better than the sunset.

"Well, you are…"

"Hey!"

"… but you fixed m' shirt. And this's something from me. A reward, so to speak," he lied. Wait… was he lying? It felt like he was, but he shouldn't be. What?

"I thought fixing your shirt was a reward for you saving me," Rose contradicted knowingly, though she did a good job of hiding her knowledge.

"I wanted to do this! Can't ya just accept that?" He jerked towards the sun, hiding his blush. What was this girl doing to him? He hadn't blushed this much since he first joined the crew. Even then, he rarely felt the blood rushing to his face.

Rose was smiling contentedly, hiding her warm cheeks as well. He really wanted to just do this out of the kindness in his heart? Maybe Russell wasn't as bad as she initially thought. _Rose, what are you doing?_ she scolded herself, shaking her head._ Don't get your thoughts mixed up. You have a promise to keep. A boy will only make it a hundred times more painful._

"Of course I can," she answered. "Thank you."

"Good girl." He heard her soft footsteps pad their way next to him. She leaned on the top castle. Russell thought that she really looked like the dancer she claimed to be right now. He kind of wished he could see her in action. "Hey, what kind of shoes are you wearing?"

"Oh, these? They're my dance shoes. I lost my work shoes so I had to wear these to work on the day you went into the bar. They're not very firm, but they were made to bend when my foot commands it. It's like a flexible, outer shell." She curved her foot to show how the shoe hugged it perfectly.

"I was wondering why they felt different. Is that why you barely make a sound when you walk?" Russell was truthfully curious.

"I guess. I really haven't thought about it before. It… kinda makes me think of all the things that I may have taken for granted. Like, that woman pirate, for instance. Who is she? How'd ya meet her?" Rose liked this game of twenty questions. It made her feel safer the more she got to know Russell.

"Oh, her," Russell deadpanned, bringing up all the horrible feelings he had for her.

"Ooh, sounds like you're not too fond of this one." Rose turned to sit on the edge of the castle.

"Not at all," he pronounced, making sure Rose knew the amount of loathe he felt for Fuzzy. "Hey, don't sit like that. One wrong move and you could be falling to the ground, but this time, I won't be there to catch you." He cringed at the thought.

"I'll be fine, I'm careful." Rose showed him how her feet were still planted somewhat on the floor.

"Down." In an instant, she hopped down and stood stiff. "Good. Anyway, Fuzzy, well," Russell breathed, finding the words hard to swallow. "She's a member of another pirate group, the Rika."

"Another group?" Rose parroted, tilting her head to the side.

Russell couldn't help but smile at the motion. She looked adorable.

_What?_

"Um, yeah," he coughed. "Captain's rival or something. We've always been chased by them. "

"Huh, I never considered you guys having an enemy."

"What? We don't seem worthy enough to ya?" Russell growled, instantly offended.

"No, not at all!" Rose furrowed her eyebrows. He didn't have to be so edgy. "I just always thought you guys were too good for enemies. Like the others didn't stand a chance against you." What was his deal?

"Oh, well, I guess that's good then. You don't need to worry about us. I'm tough, I can handle a little, pink whale," he bragged. Sadly though, he was completely serious.

"Really?" Rose snorted sarcastically at what seemed to be a joke. Though she only got a confused look in return.

"Of course!" Russell donned the most admirable smile he had. "I'm gonna be the king of the pirates one day. All the others will respect me."

Rose loved the confidence he gave off. But she wasn't exactly sure where to draw the line between confidence and arrogance. It didn't matter, he was happy right now, that was good enough.

"I'm gonna conquer the ocean," Russell continued looking off at the sinking orb. "Someday, all of it. You'll see." He was dazed, caught up in his future. There was no way he'd let a title like that run past him. Russell would chase down that crown with his life.

"I will see," Rose echoed, making a silent promise. A promise that only made sense to her. "Hey," Rose hummed, making Russell twist his head to look behind him. She was grabbing at his shirt and he flinched, thinking she wanted something else.

"W-what is it?" He tried calming his heartbeat down.

"Your shirt got ripped in the back." The rip was near his neck, smack dab in the middle. "I still have the needle and thread with me, let me fix it," she offered, taking the small supplies out of the pouch she placed in the sash around her waist.

"You don't need to. It's just a small rip." Russell felt up the back where she claimed the tear was.

"No, I want to. If sewing shirts is the only way for me to be useful, then that's what I'll do." She nearly felt insulted by the way she spoke about herself, but now wasn't the time for a change in character. "Hey, can you sit down? It's hard to keep my arms up for so long." Rose pulled him down with her. She watched her fingers, humming sweet melodies instinctively.

Russell listened to her tune, captivated by the way it echoed around his head. It was very simple but relaxing. The tune made him think of all the good things in life, everything that brought pleasure to him. It was the same feeling as conquering an enemy but magnified ten times over. The lull made Russell feel completely content with his place in the world, lifting every care and problem away. He liked the ship, he liked the people on it, he liked sitting on the top castle, and he liked listening to Rose.

"Oh, shoot," Rose whispered, pausing her song. She had accidently sewn in the wrong direction. The needle was now in the complete opposite spot than where she wanted it.

"What happened?" Russell asked, obviously dazed by the sound of his voice.

"Russell?" Rose picked up on the almost drunken behavior he put on.

"Yes?"

"W-was I humming?" She prayed that the answer was no.

"Yeah. It sounded pretty."

"Oh." Rose cursed and scolded herself, pricking her palm with her fingernail as punishment. "Um, can you do me a favor?"

"Anything," he cooed against his will. On any given day, he wouldn't talk like this. But today, at this very second, he couldn't find the power to be difficult.

"If you ever hear me humming again, stop me. Don't listen to my voice and stop me, okay?" she asked, wanting to be reassured.

"Okay," Russell answered, finding the question odd. Why would she want to stop that wonderful song? His perturbed thoughts brought him back to the land of sobriety.

Rose saw this and sighed happily. All was right again. She closed up the part where she sewed and placed her head next to his.

"Don't move, Russell. I gotta snap this piece of thread off your shirt," she whispered, tickling his ear.

Russell only hummed in answer, feeling awkward at what was happening. Not so much as the fact that Rose was in his personal bubble, but the fact that he liked the way her breathing skimmed his ear, or the way her lips briefly met his neck. He's never felt this before. Not once with any woman he's fooled around with. But why?

"Okay, I got it."

"Are ya done?" He felt sleep call him over. The sun was almost gone and the rich blue of the night was crawling to blanket the ship.

"Almost. Just this one… last… stitch…" Rose droned. She had initially moved to grab another length of thread but found her finger sticking the needle through the tiny spool and her back leaning against the wall of the top castle. Her eye lids closed along with the covering of the sky. The way the boat rocked made her feel at ease as sleep took her as its mistress.

"Woman?" Russell turned just in time to see her frozen in her place. "Damn it," he cursed, feeling jealous that she fell asleep before he did. But the soft look on her face made it all worth it. Gone were the odd quirks in her eyebrow whenever she got mad at him, and the small dimples that appeared when she smiled left, too. This was Rose in the purest sense.

Russell fought with himself in his mind. If he woke her up now, she would be in no condition to climb down the rope. But if he didn't, she'd be alone up here with a high chance of falling into the sea. Russell made a quick decision as he leaned back on the wall. They were sleeping there tonight.

* * *

"But, Sir, she's so young."

"I know full and well how old she is, though I don't need to because I don't care! Take her! Kill the boy. We don't need him."

"But—"

"Shut up unless you want to follow that boy's fate!"

Rose looked up at the bickering men, tears unable to stream down her eyes, no matter how much she wanted them to. But she couldn't cry, she wouldn't, or else the bad guys might win. There were others surrounding them, wasting their lives working on this ship.

"Please… please help me," she had whispered to each and every one of them, all turning their heads away. Except one.

"I am so sorry. I-I can't help you anymore. I… I wish things had been different. I wish I could have saved him," he mumbled, carefully picking up the trembling girl with his freshly scarred arms. She was so cold and her skin was smooth from the icy water she was fished from. This was a sick thing they were forced to do.

The girl looked beside herself, watching as a large man gripped the miniscule boy that kicked and screamed in his hands. The child was fighting so hard at his young age. Rose was no older than ten herself, yet she was weaker than the boy aged around seven years.

"Caspian!" her baby mouth called with every cell in her body. "No! Don't take him, please! Caspian!" The words swirled around the ship, tripping sailors and piercing their heads. Not one of them could work without a pang in their heart. The guilt squeezed at their chest, but no one would do a thing against it.

The little girl knew there was only one thing she could do. Something that she's been told never to do. She couldn't, the lives of these men weren't worth the one that little boy had. But right now, she couldn't tell the difference. How badly she wanted the sailors to die. The pure, white fury burning in her eyes nearly blinded her to kill every single one of them.

"Nerissa, don't do it!" the child cried, knowing that Rose would have gone to great lengths to save him. But he'd be fine… he'd be all right. "Don't do it!" With that, he was thrown into a cage fit for a large dog. That was the last time he saw that girl. That was the last time he saw anyone he cared about.

"She's not crying," someone reported to the captain. "There are no other people that we can find to threaten her with. What do we do?"

"It looks like we have to resort to torture," the captain muttered darkly after a minute of thought.

"What?" the man in charge of caring for the little girl asked, clutching tightly to the trembling child. His blood from a previous scuffle dripped onto Rose's ghostly-white face.

"You," the captain pointed at the overprotective sailor. "Take her fingers off segment by segment! I want to hear her scream!"

"Never!" he retaliated. "You can't do this!"

"I can, and I will! Do you _know_ what she is? She doesn't have a soul! It doesn't matter if she dies! It will be a relief to society!" the furious captain roared.

Rose's defender couldn't take it anymore. The man stumbled backwards in a full on sprint, running away from the others, flying over obstacle after obstacle. The sailors chased him down, obviously much faster than he. It wasn't long before the girl was ripped from his grasp.

"No! Don't hurt her!" he screeched, welcoming the scratches in the sides of his throat just to protect her.

"Kill him, he cares too much," the captain ordered absently. One sailor didn't matter to him. He reached in the back of his pocket, taking out a small knife. He brought the weak girl up by the face, cutting a neat line on her cheek. "Cry for me, darling," he croaked, waiting for the tears to come.

The defiant child spat on his nose, strong enough to take the tortures he'd give. There was no way she'd admit defeat, even if it meant giving her life.

"Little bitch," he growled, directing his fierce glare into her soul. "I'm going to find everyone you know, everyone you've ever loved, everyone who you accidentally bumped into, everyone you've been in the same room as, even everyone who's seen you walking down the street… and I'll kill them," he whispered menacingly at her. With that, the captain threw her on the ground, stomping a heavy boot on her leg.

She cried out, nails digging into the wood of the ship. The older man kneeled down and pinned her arm to the ground.

"Cry… and I'll spare your little friend. You seem to be fond of that child," he said one last time. The tip of his knife was position right over her pinky, ready to chop it off in one swift move.

"NO!"

"Woman!" Russell called, shaking her awake. "Hey, stop, stop, it's okay. Just wake up." He suffered the pain of her nails digging into his abdomen. Sometime, during the night, Russell grabbed a blanket from his room so they wouldn't freeze to death. He had also tied himself to the mast and gripped Rose tight so that they wouldn't fly away during the twilight hours.

But now, she was gripping him for dear life, making sobbing noises but forgetting to place tears in her eyes.

"Hey! Wake up, it's just a dream!" He watched her eyes peek open. They were red like she's been crying all night, and they were watery, flooded even. But her face was dry. Once he knew Rose was finally awake, he felt two arms wrap around his neck and choke him in a desperate hug.

"Don't let them take Caspian. Promise me you'll save Caspian," she whispered, still in a world all her own.

"W-who's Caspian? Girl, you're not making any sense." Despite his rough tone, he rubbed her back. She was still shuddering. What was she dreaming? And… she was making hushed noises. Was she… counting?

"… eight, nine, ten. They're all there… they're still on my hand." She slowly began releasing her grip.

"Hey, did—did you have a bad dream?" he asked, taking the blanket off and untying himself.

"Oh, Russell," she sighed, counting her fingers once more and feeling on her cheek if there was a scar. The dream… "It's just a dream," she said more for herself than Russell's sake. But it was so real.

"Who's… Who's Caspian?" Russell dared to ask, not wanting to shock her back into hysterics.

"Caspian." Rose tested the name out on her tongue. It's been so long since she's said that name. She couldn't tell him who he was. She wasn't ready to face reality. One day… one day. Today? Today, she'll change the subject. "Is it morning already? Did we sleep here all night?"

"Y-yeah. I-um—You would be a pain to try and carry down while asleep, so I let you rest up here. I didn't want our new crew member to disappear—Uh, because Captain would surely force me to scour the globe to find you." He tried to remain aloof.

"You stayed with me? All night?" She faced the rising sun. It was almost as beautiful as the setting sun. But this glowing orb brought inevitable promise; something to look forward to.

"I told ya already! It'd be easier on me if I stayed here than carry ya down!" He crossed his arms and set his face in a scrunched up frown. Suddenly, he felt a finger poke the middle of his forehead, right between each eyebrow.

"Don't frown like that, you'll get a horrible wrinkle stuck on your face." Rose already dropped the point of the previous conversation. She knew he meant well, but his words still hurt. She'd just have to keep on trying to understand him.

"What?"

"Come on, let's get down before everyone wakes up. They might get to talking if they found out we slept up here. And I know that you don't want to be in a rumor with the useless cabin girl," Rose mocked, hopping over the top castle to start her descent.

"I never called ya a useless cabin girl." Russell followed suit with blanket in hand, grumbling along the way.

Rose paused for only a minuscule second when she heard him. It was probably the sweetest thing he had ever said to her, and that warmed her heart. She decided to focus on his comment rather than the terrifying nightmare she recently had. Rose had this horrible habit of suppressing her true self in vain hopes to please everyone else.

Russell and Rose split ways, each spirit slightly dampened by doing so. Rose was probably on her way to help Nathan in the kitchen. Russell knew where he wanted to go. He needed someone to talk to. Who better than the only medical professional on board?

"Hey, Chris?" Russell knocked on the already opened door.

"Ah, yes, Russell? Did you need anything?" Christopher asked, yawning slightly as he had only recently woken up.

"Only a piece of advice," Russell sighed, tossing the blanket on the check-up table while following its path.

"Did you fight with Rose again? I swear, Russell, if I find her with so much as a scratch—," the doc started threatening. His accusing finger was slapped away and his eyes were met with a burning glare.

"I wouldn't lay a finger on her!" Russell barked then quickly added, "Your punishment isn't worth it." That was close.

But not close enough for Christopher. He may have been the only one who knew of what was blooming inside Russell. Not even the blond himself completely understood it, but he'll get there in time.

"I see." Chris rubbed the back of his neck in thought. "So, what did you want to talk about?"

"Well, you weren't entirely wrong. It's about Rose. I think… I think something's wrong with her." He lost his vision to a blur as he gazed at the floor.

"Is she hurt?" Christopher asked instinctively, immediately going through medical preparations in his head. He was robotic in the way that he thought, cramming any emotion he had to the side.

"Um, I guess you could say that. But she's not hurt on the outside," Russell continued, finding her situation hard to describe.

"Internal bleeding? Did she fall?" Doc moved to gather supplies.

"No, not like that. In her head… and her heart."

"It could be altitude if she was at the lookout, or if she exerted too much energy," Chris babbled, not making a lick of sense to Russell.

"Damn it, Doc. Just shut up and listen! It's not like she's going to die; not that kind of hurt. It's like, she's in pain but she won't tell me what it is. She's got this crazy nightmare situation; nearly ripped my skin off because of it," he explained, narrowing his glare on the doctor. Did Chris finally understand what he was trying to tell him?

"Oh," he squeaked, promptly putting away his supplies. "Oh, I see." Chris leaned against the counter opposite Russell and reaching for the back of his neck. "So, it's a psychological pain?"

"Whatever that is…"

"It has something to do with what Rose's experienced, like a bad memory. That's the only explanation for her nightmare. Do you know what happened?" Christopher opened the notebook in his head and jotting down copious notes.

"Well, she wouldn't tell me much. She kept changing the subject. But when she was half awake, she hugged me, begging me to save someone named Caspian, to make sure that 'they' don't take him. And no, I don't know who they are." Russell's mind still coiled around this impossible mystery.

"Wait a minute," Christopher interrupted with a hand raised, "you hugged her?" Now he was just teasing.

"She was still dreaming, Chris!" Russell whined, bringing his knees close to his chest to try and hide behind them.

"I'm sorry, I just couldn't help but see that look on your face," Chris chuckled, going back to the position of back on counter and hand on neck.

"What look?"

"The one where your face blotches like a half-colored tomato."

"Can you help me with Rose or not?" Russell set his glare to full capacity. Maybe this was a bad idea.

"Sorry, sorry, please, continue." Chris did his best to stifle his laughter. "Did she say anything else?"

"Um, well, while she was hugging me—Shut up, Chris!" Russell shot him with sharp eyes yet continued regardless of the laughter. "She started counting to ten. I'm pretty sure she was counting her fingers, making sure they were all there."

"Were they?"

"Were they what?"

"All there?"

"Idiot, of course they were all there!" Russell groaned, scrubbing his face. "But, I think that this might be one of the reasons she doesn't like being called Nerissa."

"Could be." Chris thought deeply on the reasons why.

Both men were pondering on what might have happened to this girl, why she was so in much pain.

"Do you think she's been exiled?" Russell asked after a few minutes of silence.

"No, I don't believe she'd be living so openly if she was. She's probably been tortured for information. The way she was counting her fingers says that she's been threatened of having one gone. And maybe this Caspian man was part of a threat. Whoever he was, she obviously cared so deeply for him." Chris glanced quickly at Russell. Choking back laughter, Chris tried staring at him seriously. But the corners of his mouth betrayed him when the doc laid eyes on Russell's furious look of jealousy. Even if the kid wasn't aware he was jealous, his body obviously was.

In Russell's head, he was growling malevolently. Who was this Caspian character? Why was he more important to her than anyone else on this ship? Why was Rose having dreams about him? Was he stronger than Russell?

_What kind of questions am I thinking?_ Russell instantly caught himself, wondering where his train of thought was heading. Wherever it was, he'd sooner jump out the train car than find out.

"The only thing we can do is try to find out more about Rose. Oh," Chris cursed, looking spitefully at the ground as he thought.

"What?" Russell dropped his legs to hang over the edge of the bed.

"That's going to be hell to do. No one on the Sirius is known for spilling their past. We all have something to forget." After a moment of contemplative quiet, Chris chirped sporadically, "Well, good luck, Russell! Now get out!"

"What? Doc, what do you mean 'good luck?' Hey! Stop pushing!" Christopher was dragging Russell out of his office, stopping at the door.

"You're her roommate, aren't you? You have to find out what her deal is and fix it," Doc threatened with a smile. "We can't have an unhappy woman on this ship; there is no dignity in that. Now go! And take your blanket out of here." With that, Christopher threw the blanket at Russell's face and used that momentum to shut the door closed. It was obvious that this poor kid needed more than a "friendly push" in the right direction.

"How the hell do I do this?" Russell sighed, stalking off to wherever his feet would take him.

* * *

**_Important. Please read._**

_I'm not going to lie to you guys. I am way too busy nowadays. I honestly thought that I could handle this, but boy was I wrong. My lovely editor and I are both incredibly swamped with work. So what this means for you is the updates for this thing are going to be severely limited to holidays and clumps of days where we actually have time to work on it._

_I still have way more plot going on, don't you worry about that. It's all been written but still in the rough stages, so I can't show them to you now._

_If you want, there is a blog on a website called tumblr. It's a roleplay blog where Nathan, the chef of this crew, answers your questions or interacts with little drabbles you send him. And yes, there are other blogs for the other pirates. The links for everything you need is on this website: [ask-the-chef. tumblr. com] Just remove the spaces and brackets. If there's a question you have about the story or about the blog, you can always PM me here or send me a message via Nate's blog (yes, I run that thing and it is my priority over this story, sorry)._

_Please don't give up on this story. Just set it on the back-burner for now. Set this on your Story Alerts to it so you get emails whenever a new chapter is out. And I will be giving a summary before every chapter that needs one just in case you forget what happened last time. I love you guys!_

**_~Don't be a stranger ;D_**


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